CHAPTER The overthrow of Persia by the king of Grecia. Leagues and conflicts, betweene the kings of the South and of the North. come unto thee? and now will I returne to fight with the prince AL CHAPTER XI LSO I, in the first yeere of Darius the Mede, even I stood to confirme and to strengthen him. And now will I shew thee the trueth. Behold, there shall stand up yet three Kings in Persia, and the fourth shalbe farre richer then they all: and by his strength through his riches he shall stirre up all against the realme of Grecia. And a mighty King shal stand up, that shall rule with great dominion, and doe according to his will. And when he shall stand up, his kingdome shall be broken, and shall be divided toward the foure winds of heaven; and not to his posteritie, nor according to his dominion which he ruled: for his kingdome shall be pluckt up, even for others besides those. And the King of the South shall be strong, and one of his princes, and he shall be strong above him, and have dominion: his dominion shall be a great dominion. And in the end of yeeres they shall ioyne themselves together: for the Kings daughter of the South shall come to the King of the North to make an agreement, but she shall not retaine the power of the arme, neither shall he stand, nor his arme: but she shall be given up, and they that brought her, and he that begate her, and he that strengthened her in these times. But out of a branch of her rootes shall one stand up in his estate, which shall come with an armie, and shall enter into the fortresse of the King of the North, and shall deale, against them, and shall prevaile: and shall also carie captives into Egypt their gods with their princes, and with their precious vessels of silver and of gold, and he shall continue moe yeeres then the King of the North. So the King of the South shall come into his kingdome, and shall returne into his owne land. But his sonnes shall be stirred up, and shall assemble a multitude of great forces: and one shall certainly come and overflow and passe through: then shall he returne, and be stirred up even to his fortresse. And the King of the South shall be moved with choler, and shall come forth and fight with him, even with the King of the North: and hee shall set forth a great multitude, but the multitude shall be given into his hand. And when he hath taken away the multitude, his heart shall be lifted up: and he shall cast downe many tenne XI thousands: but he shall not be strengthened by it. For the King CHAPTER of the North shall returne, and shall set forth a multitude greater then the former, and shall certainly come (after certaine yeeres) with a great armie and with much riches. And in those times : there shall many stand up against the King of the South: also the robbers of thy people shall exalt themselves to establish the vision, but they shall fall. So the King of the North shall come, and cast up a mount, and take the most fenced cities, and the armes of the South shall not withstand, neither his chosen people, neither shall there be any strength to withstand. But he that commeth against him, shall doe according to his owne will, and none shall stand before him and he shall stand in the glorious land, which by his hand shall be consumed. He shall also set his face to enter with the strength of his whole kingdome and upright ones with him : thus shall he doe, and he shall give him the daughter of women corrupting her: but she shall not stand on his side, neither be for him. After this shall he turne his face unto the yles, and shall take many, but a prince for his own behalfe shall cause the reproch offred by him to cease without his owne reproch: he shall cause it to turne upon him. Then he shall turne his face towards the fort of his owne lande: but he shall stumble and fall, and not bee found. Then shall stand up in his estate a raiser of taxes in the glory of the kingdome, but within few dayes he shall be destroyed, neither in anger, nor in battell. And in his estate shall stand up a vile person, to whom they shal not give the honour of the kingdome: but hee shall come in peaceably, and obtaine the kingdome by flatteries. And with the armes of a flood shall they bee overflowen from before him, and shall be broken: yea also the prince of the covenant. And after the league made with him he shall worke deceitfully, for hee shall come up, and shall become strong with a small people. He shall enter peaceably even upon the fattest places of the province, and he shall doe that which his fathers have not done, nor his fathers fathers, he shall scatter among them the praye and spoile, and riches: yea and he shall forecast his devices against the strong holdes, even for a time. And he shall stirre up his power, and his courage against the king of the South with a great army, and the king of the South shall bee stirred up to battell with a very great and mightie armie : but he shall not stand: for they shall forecast devices against him. Yea they that feede of the portion of his meate, shall destroy him, and his armie shall overflow: and many shall fall downe slaine. And both these kings hearts shall be to doe mischiefe, and they shall speake lies at one table: but it shall not prosper: for yet the CHAPTER The invasion and tyrannie of the Romanes. end shall bee at the time appointed. Then shall hee returne into his land with great riches, and his heart shall be against the holy covenant: and he shall doe exploits, and returne to his owne land. At the time appointed he shall returne, and come toward the South: but it shall not be as the former, or as the latter. For the ships of Chittim shall come against him: therefore he shall be grieved and returne, and have indignation against the holy Covenant: so shal he doe, he shall even returne, and have intelligence with them that forsake the holy Covenant. And armes shal stand on his part, and they shall pollute the Sanctuarie of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shal place the abomination that maketh desolate. And such as doe wickedly against the covenant, shall he corrupt by flatteries: but the people that do know their God, shall be strong and doe exploits. And they that understand among the people shall instruct many yet they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivitie, and by spoile many dayes. Now when they shall fall, they shalbe holpen with a litle help: but many shall cleave to them with flatteries. And some of them of understanding shall fall, to trie them, and to purge, and to make them white, even to the time of the end: because it is yet for a time appointed. And the king shall doe according to his will, and he shall exalt himselfe, and magnifie himselfe above every god, and shall speake marvelous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined, shall be done. Neither shall hee regard the god of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnifie himselfe above all. But in his estate shall he honour the god of forces and a God whome his fathers knew not, shall hee honour with gold, and silver, and with precious stones, and pleasant things. Thus shall hee doe in the most strong holds with a strange god, whom he shall acknowledge and increase with glory: and he shall cause them to rule over many, and shall divide the land for gaine. And at the time of the end shall the king of the South push at him, and the king of the North shal come against him like a whirlewind with charets, and with horsemen, and with many ships, and he shall enter into the countreys, and shall overflow and passe over. He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countreys shall be overthrowen: but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chiefe of the children of Ammon. He shall stretch foorth his hand also upon the countreys, and the land of Egypt shall not escape. But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of : Egypt: and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shalbe at his steps. But tidings out of the East, and out of the North shall trouble him therefore he shall goe foorth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many. And hee shall plant the tabernacles of his palace betweene the seas in the glorious holy mountaine, yet he shall come to his end, and none shall helpe him. AND CHAPTER XII CHAPTER XI from their ND at that time shall Michael stand up, the great Prince Michael shall which standeth for the children of thy people, and there deliver Israel shalbe a time of trouble, such as never was since there was troubles. a nation, even to that same time: and at that time thy people shalbe delivered, every one that shalbe found written in the booke. And many of them that sleepe in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. And they that be wise shall shine as the brightnesse of the firmament, and they that turne many to righteousnesse, as the starres for ever and ever. But thou, O Daniel, shut up the wordes, and seale the booke even to the time of the ende: many shall runne to and fro, and knowledge shall bee increased. : the times. Then I Daniel looked, and behold, there stood other two, the Daniel is one on this side of the banke of the river, and the other on that informed of side of the banke of the river. And one said to the man clothed in linnen, which was upon the waters of the river; How long shall it bee to the end of these wonders? And I heard the man clothed in linnen, which was upon the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand, and his left hand unto heaven, and sware by him that liveth for ever, that it shalbe for a time, times, and an halfe and when hee shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall bee finished. And I heard, but I understood not: then said I, O my Lord, what shalbe the end of these things? And he said, Goe thy way, Daniel: for the wordes are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. Many shalbe purified, and made white and tried: but the wicked shall doe wickedly: and none of the wicked shall understand, but the wise shall understand. And from the time that the dayly sacrifice shalbe taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shalbe a thousand two hundred and ninetie dayes. Blessed is he that waiteth, and commeth to the thousand, three hundred and five and thirtie dayes. But goe thou thy way till the end be: for thou shalt rest, and stand in 4:00 the lot at the end of the dayes. 289 Hosea to shew Gods iudgement for spirituall whoredome, taketh Gomer, and hath by her Iezreel, Lo-ruhamah, and Lo-ammi. The restauration of Iudah and Israel. HOSEA CHAPTER I HE word of the LORD that came unto Hosea, the sonne of Beeri, in the dayes of Uzziah, Iotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah kings of Iudah, and in the dayes of Ieroboam the sonne of Ioash king of Israel. The beginning of the word of the LORD by Hosea: and the LORD sayd to Hosea, Goe, take unto thee a wife of whoredomes, and children of whoredomes: for the land hath committed great whoredome, departing from the LORD. So he went and tooke Gomer the daughter of Diblaim, which conceived and bare him a sonne. And the LORD said unto him, Call his name Iezreel; for yet a little while, and I will avenge the blood of Iezreel upon the house of Iehu, and will cause to cease the kingdome of the house of Israel. And it shall come to passe at that day, that I will breake the bow of Israel in the valley of Iezreel. And shee conceived againe and bare a daughter, and God sayd unto him, Call her name Lo-ruhamah:1 for I will no more have mercy upon the house of Israel: but I will utterly take them away. But I will have mercy upon the house of Iudah, and will save them by the LORD their God, and will not save them by bow, nor by sword, nor by battell, by horses nor by horsemen. Now when shee had weaned Lo-ruhamah, she conceived and bare a sonne. Then sayde God, Call his name Lo-ammi: 2 for yee are not my people, and I will not be your God. Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot bee measured nor numbred, and it shall come to passe, that in the place where it was said unto them, Yee are not my people, there it shall be said unto them, Ye are the sonnes of the living God. Then shall the children of Iudah and the children of Israel be gathered together, and appoint themselves one head, and they shall come up out of the land: for great shalbe the day of Iezreel. 1 That is, not having obtained mercie. 2 That is, not my people. |