Works, Book 4 · Letter 6
EPISTLE VI.
Mr. Med's Answer to Mr. Hayn's First Letter about several passages in Daniel and the Revelation.
SIR,
THE last week I could not get any time to answer your Letter, and therefore I thought good to make use of your indulgence, that I should answer at my best leisure. And though I have not now that leisure I expected, yet I will not frustrate you any longer. What passages of mine you should have seen upon Daniel's times, I cannot imagine; for I remember not to have done any thing directly upon that Prophecy, but only occasionally in some Discourses upon other places of Scripture: whether any body hath extracted those parcels from their body, I cannot tell, but wish they had not, lest I may have wrong by being mistaken.
For your Two Positions about the Fourth Kingdom in Daniel, your Grounds do as much mistake as contradict my Tenets. And therefore I shall either answer or decline your Arguments by setting down my own opinion in these following Theses.
1. The Roman Empire to be the Fourth Kingdom of Daniel, was believed by the Church of Israel both before and in our Saviour's time; received by the Disciples of the Apostles, and the whole Christian Church for the first 400 years, without any known contradiction. And I confess, having so good ground in Scripture, it is with me tantùm non Articulus fidei, little less than an Article of faith.
2. I acknowledge also the subject of the Apocalyptical Visions to be Fata Imperii Romani post primum Christi adventum usque ad secundum supersuturi, The Fates of the Roman Empire, which after the first coming of Christ was still to continue in being even till the second. And this I affirm, the Roman Kingdom was revealed unto Daniel, but not according to that distinct succession of things and specification of the Fates thereof (which was first made known unto S. Iohn,) but only in general and in imagine confusa, not to be explicated but by Christ himself. I say, the Roman Kingdom was revealed to Daniel in general, but the order of the times thereof, and the series rerum gerundarum or course of things to be acted therein, not until the Revelation unto S. Iohn.
3. Nor is it strange or unwonted, that a thing may be revealed in general, and yet most of the particulars concerning the same to be unknown and sealed. The calling of the Gentiles, or the Kingdom of Christ among the Gentiles, by way of surrogation to the Iews, was revealed unto S. Peter and the rest of the Apostles; but the particular Fates and States of that Kingdom were never known till Christ revealed them to S. Iohn in the Apocalyptical Visions. The like I say of the Fourth or Roman Kingdom; the general revelation whereof could not but be before the opening of the sealed Book in the Apocalyps, since it had then been so long a time in the world, as it was grown past the foreign, and had fulfilled what it was to fulfil upon Daniel's people.
4. As for the Persecutions of the Church, I deny the argument either of the Seals or Trumpets to be the Roman persecutions of Christ's Kingdom, or that any of them have reference to persecutions save the Fifth Seal only; or that any thing contained in them was made known to Daniel, save the Catastrophe only represented in the last Trumpet,Rev. 10. …. which the Angelus tonitruum proclaims there to be Consummatio Mysterii Dei, prout annunciavit servis suis Prophetis, The finishing of the Mystery of God, as he hath declared to his servants the Prophets; and therefore cannot be denied to have been both foretold and expected for the general, although not for the Manner, Time, and Order in serie rerum gerundarum, till now.
5. Howsoever my Tenet here be, yet your Assertion, That the Romans persecution was revealed to none till Christ revealed it to Iohn, cannot stand, unless you deny the coming of the man of sin (who is a limb of that Kingdom) to be any part of the Churche's afflictions: For this was revealed unto S. Paul, both for the quality and the fall thereof, viz. 2 Thess. 2. 8.That Christ should destroy it foreign which I make no doubt but S. Paul learned out of the seventh of Daniel, where that ruffling Horn also is not destroyed until the Son of man comes in the clouds of heaven, to receive that Universal Kingdom which shall never suffer persecution.
6. But whereas you say, that the ruffling Horn of the Fourth Beast is Antiochus Epiphanes; I demonstrate the contrary by this one Argument.
The ruffling Horn reigns until the Ancient of days comes in fiery flames to destroy him, and to give judgment unto the Saints of the most High; and until the time comes that the Saints possessed the Kingdom, viz. until the Son of man comes in the clouds of heaven, to receive a Kingdom wherein all Nations, People and Languages should serve and obey him, Daniel 7. verses 9, 10, 11, 13, expounded, ver. 22, 26, &c. But Antiochus Epiphanes reigned not until this time, (for he died 160 years and more before the Birth of Christ, and almost 200 years before his Ascension; the least of which numbers is a longer space of time than was from the death of Alexander unto Antiochus.) Ergò Antiochus Epiphanes is not that ruffling Horn.
The changing of Times and Laws (whereby the power of this Horn is described) is an Oriental phrase to express potestatem foreign. Nor are Times here to be taken in so abstract a notion, but concretely for status rerum tempora varian…ium, or Res quibus variatur status temporum, as are mutationes Rerumpub. & regiminis rerum; Times, for things done in time, whereby the Times are altered: such as are the alterations of States and Governments: According to which notion, Dan. 2. 21. it is said of God, that he changeth times and seasons, he removeth Kings and setteth up Kings; and I Chron. 29. 30. that the Acts of David were written in the Books of Samuel, Nathan, and Gad, the Seers, with all his reign, and his might, and the times that went over him, and over Israel, and over all the Kingdoms of the Countries. And whether the Pope (if, I say, he is that Horn) took not upon him a power of changing such Times as these, I shall not need to tell you. And yet take Times in your own Notion, and it would make a shift to fit him as well as Antiochus.
To your Second Position.
The proof of your Second Position, That the Fourth Beast, Dan. 7. is not able sufficiently to express the Roman Empire, is in the mainest part Petitio principii, wherein that is taken for granted which is in question: For you take for granted, that the Type of the Roman Empire in the Apocalyps borrows his Ten horns from Daniel's fourth Beast, as a distinct Beast from it: But I say he borrows them not, they are his own proper and native horns; Daniel's Beast and he being one and the same Beast I grant that the Apocalyptical Beast for the shape of his body is beholding to Daniel's three first Beasts, but that he borroweth any from the fourth, I deny. Nor do Horns, more or fewer, distinguish the species of a Beast: For in the Apocalyps there is a Lamb with seven horns, and a Lamb with two horns, and yet for kind a Lamb still: So Daniel's Hegoat had first one horn, and afterward four horns, and yet the same Goat still, &c.
The correspondence in number of the several Heads of Daniel's four Beasts put together, with the seven heads of the Apocalyptical Beast, is but casual: Neither can it be proved that the Fourth of Daniel's Beasts had but one head, as is here to be supposed: (for the third Beast hath the four heads, and the other three but one a piece.) For the mentioning of the Head which bore the ten horns in the singular number, Verse 20. proves no more it had but one head, than the mentioning of mouth likewise in the singular number, Apoc. 13. ver. 2, 5, 6. proves the Apocalyptical Beast had bu… one mouth. For indeed the Ten horns were all upon one head, as well in the Apocalyptical Beast (viz. upon the seventh or uppermost head) as in Daniel's Beast; and the mouth of the Apocalyptical Beast was the mouth also of the seventh head, to act the state of which head S. Iohn saw him*Rev. 13. 1. rise out of the Sea, &c.
And whereas you speak of an insufficient expression of the Roman Empire by Daniel's Fourth Beast; you may perceive by that I have said before, that it would well enough agree with my Principles to grant it; my Tenet being, That the Fourth Beast should not be so distinctly with all accoutrements revealed unto Daniel as it was unto S. Iohn, because the specification of the several States and Fates thereof was yet sealed and unrevealed. And the third Kingdom was not so distinctly revealed to Daniel in the Leopard, Chap. 7. as it was two years after to the same Daniel in the great He-goat, Chap. 8. &c. The dispensation of God in these Revelations is to be measured according to his pleasure and the use of the Church, &c.
But it is now three a clock, and I have no more time. I had much rather confer of these things by word of mouth, wherein perhaps I could give better satisfaction. Conference by writing is wont to multiply it self into so much paper, as takes away a great deal of my time, and gives me no leisure to perfect that whereby I might perhaps prevent a great part of the Objections which now are made. Thus hoping you will accept this tumultuary Answer, I rest, commending your Studies and endeavours to the Divine Blessing.
Christ's Colledge, Iune 17. 1629. Your loving Friend, Ioseph Mede.