forged after the events, as has been alleged of fome of the Scripture prophecies. His predictions of the destruction of Jerufalem, and difperfion, for a very long period, of the Jews into all nations, but fo as they fhould be preferved diftinct from all other people in order to their reftoration; of the general prevalency of his religion over the world, and its continuance to all ages; and of the mifchiefs, confequent upon the perverfion of it; thefe are events, which at that time were to the highest degree improbable. It was altogether needlefs for him to rifk his credit upon the completion of thefe predictions; nor is it to be fuppofed, a perfon of his wildom would have needlefsly hazarded the confutation of his whole fcheme in fuch a manner, if he had not been certain that what he foretold would be fully accomplished, and that though heaven and earth were to pafs away, his word fhould ftand, as the event hitherto has fufficiently fhewn.

That a power of fo extraordinary a kind, and which fhould produce fuch important effects, especially upon the religious ftate of the world, as Popery has done, fhould be predicted in Scripture, was reafonably to be expected. Accordingly by Daniel, who flourished near three thousand years ago, it is foretold, chap. vii. 19. that there fhould be a tyrannical power, which should "wear out the faints of the Moft High," and that they fhould be given into his hands until a time, and times, "and the dividing of times," that is a year, and two years, and half a year, which give one thoufand two hundred and fixty days, which in prophetic ftyle fignifies fo many years. This period is alfo mentioned in five different predictions in the New Teftament. This power is fpoken of, verfe 23. as a kingdom "different from all before it." And fo indeed it is; being a religious tyranny, or fecular kingdom founded on a pretence of religion. It is reprefented as a monfter with "teeth of iron," and "claws of brafs ;" and very properly; for it is the character of that merciless religion to deftroy all who oppofe it, and to endeavour (by driving those who are fo unhappy as to fall under its tyranny to make fhipwreck of confcience) to damn all

whom

whom it deftroys. It is spoken of as "devouring, ftamping in pieces," and laying wafle the whole world, as "changing times and laws," and " "speaking

66

great words against the Moft High." All which fuit the blood-thirsty cruelty, the unequalled arrogance, and blafphemous impiety of the bishops and church of Rome to the greateft exactnefs. It is there faid, that he should not "regard the defire of women;" which plainly points out the prohibition of marriage; that he fhould "honour gods-protectors," that is, tutelar faints, and "a god, whom his fathers knew not," a wafer-god, of which god fome thoufands are made in one day by the priests, and eaten, and digefted by the people. See alfo 1 Tim. iv.

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In the Apocalypfe, chap. xi. xii. &c. it is copiously defcribed, where it is reprefented under the appearance of a monster, or "wild beaft," whofe "feven heads" fignify, as afterwards explained, the feven hills upon which Rome was built, and " ten horns" the ten kingdoms, into which the Roman empire was divided, whofe blafphemous names" are notorious, as of God's vicegerant, Our lord god the pope, Vice-god, and the like, who"wars with the faints, and overcomes them; who "receives power over the nations," and is "worthip"ped" by them. The fame is alfo afterwards reprefented under the character of the " great harlot," or idolatrefs, with whom the "kings of the earth have "committed fornication," that is the idolatry of worfhipping the images of faints, and kneeling to the Hoft. She is afterwards reprefented as "drunk with the "blood" of the martyrs of Jefus. The kings of the earth are afterwards mentioned as " giving their power "to the monster," as it is notorious that most of the kings in Europe acknowledged the pope for their lord god, and held their crowns of him, as fome of them do ftill. The fame power is likewife held forth under the figure of a great city, the feat of wealth, luxury, pleafure, riches, and commerce, one article of which commerce, peculiar to Rome papal, is her trade in the "fouls of men."

And

And by the apoftle Paul this fatal delufion is called The man of fin, or the very abftract and quinteffence of iniquity, a character fit only for the popifh religion, as it alone of all religions contains an affemblage of all that is most exquifitely wicked, beyond what could have been thought within the reach of human invention unaffifted by dæmons. Of which the infernal court of inquifition is a pregnant proof; where cruelty, the difpofition the moft oppofite to all good, is carried to that diabolical excefs, that few hearts are hard enough to bear the mere defcription of it in a book. The propriety of giving the appellation of The man of fin, to the Romish impofture, appears from confidering, that it has had the peculiar curfed art not only to turn the mildeft of all religions into a scene of the most horrible barbarity; but to make the most pure and heavenly fyftem of doctrines and laws, which ever were, or will be, given to men, an authority for eftablishing for points of faith the most hideous abfurdities, and contradictions to common fenfe; and for licensing every abominable wickednefs that has ever been thought of or practifed. Infomuch, that the fixed rates of abfolution, for the most horrid and unnatural vices, ftand appointed by their popes, and published in different editions. By which means, the great defign of Chriftianity, which was to teach men, to deny ungodliness and worldly lufts, and to live foberly, righteously, and godly, is defeated among the deluded profelytes to, that infamous religion. For instead of this, popery teaches, that any man, who pays handfomely, may have an indulgence for any number of years to live in all manner of abominable impiety, profaneness, and impurity. Is not this the The man of fin?

Whoever would fee how exactly the Scripture predictions are fuited to reprefent this diabolical delufion, has only to read the hiftories of popery, and accounts of the inquifition. There he will find what hideous ravage has been made by it in different countries. Witness their infamous croifades; the maffacres of the Waldenfes and Albigenfes, of whom almoft a million were reckoned to be flain. In thirty years from the founding of the order of the Jefuits, above eight hundred thousand

4

protestants

proteftants were put to death by the hand of the executioner only. The blooody butchering duke of Alva ufed to make it his boaft of having cut off in a few years thirty thousand proteftants in the Netherlands. The deftruction of helplefs victims facrificed to that infernal fury, the inquifition, in one period of thirty years, is reckoned at one hundred and fifty thoufand. Is not this dreadful and wide-wafting mifchief, this terror of human nature, this hell on earth, properly reprefented as a moniter, or wild beaft, with iron teeth to devour and deftroy, as drunk with blood, and afpiring to an authority above all that is called God, or is worshipped, that is, above all other power and government, challenging the privilege of the grand tyrant and deftroyer?

These are only a few among many inftances of the unequalled horrors of this fatal delufion, and of the exactness of the Scripture predictions, which can be applied to nothing elfe, that ever was heard of upon earth. And if in the days of the authors of the above predictions, there was nothing known among mankind, which might give the hint of fuch a power as that of Antichrift, or popery; and if no account of this power in our times, when it is fo well known, can in prophetic ftyle more clearly defcribe it, than we find it reprefented in the predictions of Scripture, let the oppofers of prophecy account for this wonderful agreement between the prediction and the completion, as they beft can.

These are a few, among almoft innumerable predictions of future events, of which holy Scripture is full. And, as these fhew themselves clearly to be genuine revelations from God; the others contained in the fame writings may in reafon be fuppofed to be of the fame original, though the times when they were given, and the exactness of their refpective completions, fhould be more fubject to cavil, than thefe here quoted. And the oppofers of the revelation, in which thefe predictions are contained, are in reafon obliged to give fome plaufible account, how they came there, if not by Divine infpiration.

Let

(Book IV. Let Chriftianity have been introduced into the world when it would, it is impoffible to give any rational or fatisfying account of its prevalence and establishment, but its being a Divine inflitution. For fuppofing it forged in any age before or fince the received date of about feventeen hundred years ago, it wil be equally impoffible to conceive how it fhould come to pafs upon mankind, if it was a fiction. The Chrif tian religion has been eftablished upon the ruins of the national religion of every country, in which it has been received. It had therefore the united forces of regal power, facerdotal craft, and popular fuperftition to bear down, before it could get footing in the world. Its character is directly oppofite to the fordid views and fecular interefts of mankind, and acceptable to none but virtuous and elevated minds, which in all ages and nations have ever been comparatively a very fmall number of the fpecies, and not fit, nor difpofed to ftruggle with, much lefs likely to get the better of the majority, fo as to cram a fet of falfehoods down their throats.

All the falfe fchemes of religion, which ever prevailed in the world, have come to be established either by the multitude's being led to embrace them by craft, or driven to it by force. That Chriftianity was established by craft, is on all accounts incredible, and particularly from confidering its character, which is altogether feparate from worldly views, or any kind of motives, which might incline men to deceive; and efpecially from its fetting up upon the foot of the moft ftrict integrity, of commanding all its votaries to avoid even the leaft appearance of evil, and by no means to think of doing evil for the fake of any poffible good confequence. Such precepts as thefe would by no means have fuited a fcheme calculated for deceiving mankind. On the contrary, we always find the great doctrine preached up by impoftors is, Zeal for the caufe, rather than for the truth. This appears dreadfully confpicuous in the bloody catalogue of fufferers, who have fallen a facrifice to the Mahometan and popifh delufions. The oppofers of Chriftianity are obliged, if they will fhew themfelves reafoners, to give fome rational account of

the