many express Prophecies. That the Wolf shall feed Part 2. with the Lamb, and fwords be turned into ploughshares, and men shall not burt or destroy one another. The Art of War which fprung from Hell, fhall return thither. Nothing but the corruption and wickedness of the World. doth now make it neceffary. The Devil of Covetoufnefs, and of Ambition, the fpirit of Revenge, and the like, fhall return to the bottomlefs pit, whence they came. And it fhall no more be a point of honour to know how to maffacre mankind, to storm Towns, and gain Battels, and deftroy Countries, and cover the Fields with dead Bodies.

5. This fhall be a Kingdom of Humility. All. Chara&er, Deep those vain Titles, which now ferve for ornament Humility. and pride, fhall then be vanifht. Brotherly Love fhall make all men equal; not that all diftinction, and all dignities among men fhall cease. This Kingdom is no Anarchy; there fhall be fome to govern, and others to obey. But Government fhall then be without Pride and Infolence, without Tyranny, and without Violence. Subjects fhall obey their Rulers, with an humble fpirit; and Governors fhall rule their Subjects, with a fpirit of meekness and gentleness.

&ter, Th: a

6. All thofe Arts which now ferve the Pride and 6. CharaVanity of mankind, shall then be abolisht. 'Tis amy- bolishing fterious and deep defign of God, that his Provi- of unlawdence permits the Reign of Vanity, in the place of full & vain Charity, which is retired and gone. What a multitude of People are maintained by this Reign of Vanity? for how could the Poor fubfift, without the vanity of the Rich, who will have ftately Houses, gawdy furniture, pompous garments of Gold,Silk, Point, Lace,and fair delicioufly, and keep many attendants, and domeftick Servants? by all thefe doth fubfift

Sf 4

Part2. fubfift that great Company of Artificers, GoldSmiths, Painters, and those that work in Tapistry, in Stuffs of Wool, Gold and Silk, Cooks, Pastrymen, Architects,Taylors, and fuch as make Point and Lace, &c. Thefe comprehend above three quar ters of the World, and all thefe muft dye of hunger, if the feveral branches of humane vanity were not as fo many fecret and under-ground chanels,whereby Divine Providence diftributes food and nourishment to fo many perfons. They therefore who would cut off all this Vanity, before the season of returning Charity, do confound the times and Characters of the different Periods of the Church. These are the Vanities of the World, and while the World reigns, they must have their courfe; but 'tis certain withal, that affoon as the Reign of Charity thall return, all these shall be quite banitht.

7. Chara

return of

7. And this is the feventh Character of the reign ter, The of Chrift on Earth, that fervent charity shall be reCharity. fored, and fupply all the neceffities of inferior perfons. By this athoufand Channels fhall be opened for the relief of the Poor, like thofe of vanity: And they who now live upon the Vanity of worldly men, fhall then live upon the charity of the Saints. Inferiors are now vain and proud as well as Supe riors, they learn and derive their vanity from that of those above 'em and as Diogenes trampled under his feet the Houthold-ftuff and pride of Plato, with a greater Pride than his, fo oftentimes the Pride and vanity of thofe, who grow rich by the vanity of others, is greater than that ofthe Rick themselves. It fhall not then be thus; Every man shall be content with what is neceflary: fo that they to whom God fhall have given plenty of wealth, fhall make no difficulty therewith to fupply the neceffities of the Indigent. A community of Goods fhall then take place,

place, like that which was feen in the first years of Part 2, the Church at ferufalem. Not that Men fhall lofe their property in the Goods they have, but every one fhall difpenfe largely to fuch as need. As they who gathered more Manna than the rest had no thing over, and those who gathered lefs, had no want: That which thus happened in the Wildernefs, was not only an Emblem, but a true Type of what fhall be in this laft Period of the Church. They who have more than others, in regard of poffeffion, fhall have no more than others, in refpect of Use.

8. The face of the Church, as to the external 8, Charapart of it, shall be uniform in its worship, in its Go ater. Uniformity, in vernment and Ceremonies. For that diverfity, and worship & mixture of colours whichis at prefent,proceeds not Religion, from the Spirit of God. This uniformity it may be fhall not be fuch as to remove every little difference: but there shall be none left that is effential, none that may be called evil; all that which favors of Pride and Tyranny, fhall be banisht from the Government of the Church; and that which ferves only for Pomp, fhall not be admitted into its Ceremonies. Thus much for the certain Characters.

&ter. Chrift

1. The doubtful Characters are; First, The Def 1. Doubtcent of Chrift into this World, to reign visibly here. full CharaThe Prophecies of Saint John and of Daniel feem to shall defimport thus much. The latter faith, that the Son of cend from man, i. e. Jefus Chrift, came to the ancient of days, and that Dominion and a Kingdom was given him. And St. John faith, that the Saints shall reign with Chrift a thousand years. I would not be too confident, that this ought to be understood of a visible defcent and abode of Chrift upon Earth; yea, I do not believe it probable. But to me it seems very Evident, that this Reign shall begin with fame mira culous

Part 2. culous appearance of our Lord in his Glory. Afte which he fhall go back to Heaven, and from thence govern this victorious Church. Mr. I. Mede, and others after him, would make this reign of Chrift for a thousand years, to be the Day of Indgement, and that within this time fhall be the Refurrection of the dead. Others fay, that the Resurrection, and laft Indgement, fhall be before this Reign of Christ; but I dare not determine that.

2. Doubt

&er, whether all earthly Powers

bolisht,

Dan.7. 115

12.

2. It is likewife dubious, whether all the Powers of full Chara- the World must then be abolisht. Which those words of Daniel feem to fignify, The Beast was flain, and his Body deftroyed, and given to the burning flame. shall be a Concerning thereft of the Beasts, they had their Dominion taken away; yet their lives were prolonged for a feafon and a Time. Beafts do certainly denote States and Empires; fo that it seems as if all Soveraign Power, i. e. Monarchical, should be taken away; and that Chrift alone should rule by his Vicegerents. I leave this undefided. But to me it seems probable, that the government of the World, fhall affume the ancient form of the Commonwealth of Ifrael: That it fhall be a Theocrafy: that God will establish Iudges and Governours, by a a perticular inftinct of the People and their guides; that he will instruct them in his will by inspired Perfons,whofe orders fhall be punctually followed.

3. Doubr

ter. whe

ther the

Martyrs shall be raifed.

3. Tis alfo uncertain,whether the Martyrs shall full Chara- rife, to be the Administrators of this Kingdom. 'Tis true, St. John seems to fay fo in exprefs words, & the Souls of those who were bebeaded for the Teftimony of Iefus, &c. shall live and reign with Chrift a Rev. 20.4 thousand years. Though I have fome difficulty to be of that opinion, yet I know not what to answer to that Text; for if it intend only the deliverance of the Church in general, under the Emblem of a Re

furrections

2

furrection; what need was there to mention only Part 2. the Martyrs? It is faid, that the difcourfe is not of Bodies, but of Souls: and that the original word doth not fignify to rife again, but only to live: and the Souls of those who were beheaded shall live. But firft,'tis well known, that Souls dye not, and confequently cannot be faid to rife, but as they reaffume their Bodies. 2. The learned know alfo, that the Soul is often put for the whole perfon, especially when the refurrection is spoken of, witness that paffage, Thou wilt not leave my Soul in the Grave.Laftly, I am not fubtile enough to difcern the difference, between living again, and rifing; I always thought they were two words of the fame import. And I think it were easy to prove, that those who have been beheaded, cannot live again but by a Refurrection. 'Tis true,in the fourth Verfe'tis onlyfaid, they shall live; but 'tis plain by the fifth Verfe, that to live and to live again, in the Text are the fame thing. For 'tis added, that the Rest of the dead should not live again, till the thousand years were accomplisht. The other dead men spoken of, v.4. must then live again at the beginning of the thoufand years. Farther, without this, I know not what our Lord Jefus Chrift would fay to his Apostles in thofe words. Verily, I fay unto you, that you who Matth, 19. have followed me in the regeneration, when the Son 28. of man is fat on the Throne of his Glory, you shall fit upon twelve Thrones, judging the twelve Tribes of Ifrael. What ever fenfe is given to these words, I cannot find any thing that gives me fatisfaction. Should it be understood of the last Judgement,to the fame effect, as St. Paul fpeaks, We shall judge the World, and we shall judge the Angels; that seems to be but a small matter, that deferved not to be fo folemnly ushered in, with a verily I say unto you.

For