The Name Mark and Number of the Beast, Chapter 7
CHAP. VII. The whole Process of the Discourse is repeated: That there are 666 years from the beginning of the Roman as the Fourth Metal-Kingdom, to the setting up of the Name, or Vniversal Headship of the Bishop of Rome; And that this is the meaning of the Spirit in the Revelation, when he speaketh of the Name of the Beast, and of the Number of the Name.
FOR the cleerer Demonstration of the Truth, it is necessary that I should Repeat the sum of that which I have formerly delivered, that we may see the whole Process of the Disputation. First, I have shewed, That the Name of the Beast is not the word Lateinos, nor any other Grammatical Name whatsoever; but in the Apocalyptical stile, it noteth his Universal Headship or Power, standing in immediate Opposition to the Name or Headship of the Lamb. Secondly, For the time of the beginning of this Universal Headship, I have shewed, That it had not only a determinate beginning, but it began after the Fall of the Empire: and not only so, but it began after the Fall of the Empire, in such a time when the Universal Headship was ascribed to the Bishop of Rome. Now this I have proved, out of the Stories, to begin under the Emperor Phocas, when the Decree went forth, That the Bishop of Rome should be Head over all Churches. For the Calculation of the times, I have shewed, That there is a Chain of 666 years, from the beginning of the Roman as the Fourth Metal-Kingdom, to the setting up of the Name or Universal Headship aforesaid. To the clearer probation of which, I have largely insisted upon two Points. First, That the Roman is the Fourth Metal-Kingdom; against Iunius and his followers. Secondly, That the Roman doth begin, as the Fourth Metal-Kingdom, not from Iulius or Augustus Caesar, but from that time when the Church came under the Dominion of that People. Now from this beginning, I do positively Affirm, That there is a Chain of 666 years to the beginning of the Papacie, set forth by the Type or Emblem of the little Horn, Dan. 7. And this is the true Accommodation and Application of Daniel's Visions to the Stories of the Church.
And whereas Iohn in the Revelation speaketh of the rising of the Two-Horned Beast out of the Earth, that the Number of the Name, or Universal Headship, of this Beast is 666; His meaning is, That there are 666 years from the beginning of the Roman as the Fourth Metal-Kingdom, to the setting up of the Name or Universal Headship of the Beast. He doth more fully repeat that which was more briefly delivered before. And in these Calculations, he doth but refer us to Daniel's Chronologie in the Image of persecuting States. This is the whole process of the Discourse.
But before I come to the Point, I will remove a mistake in some of our latter Commentaries, which will have Mahomet, or the Turk, to be the little Horn. This is the Opinion of Grasserus, and Mr Brightman.
I have been held with some kind of admiration, to see two such worthy Expositors to leave the Common and plain way, and to embrace a private Fancy of their own, so contrary to the scope of the Scriptures, and to the ordinary Reason of men.
But let us come to Argument.
First, The little Horn and the Ten Horns in the text, are set forth as the parts that do integrate and make up the Roman as the Fourth Metal-Kingdom. But so do neither Mahomet, nor the Turk, as it is plain by experience. For who can say, That the Turk or Mahomet, are any integral parts of the Roman Kingdom, being every way so contrary and opposite, having no union or conjunction at all?
Object. 1. But it may be Replied, The ten Kings that arose out of the Ruines of the old Empire, are reckoned as Branches and Parts of the Roman Kingdom; and yet they were the Princes by whom the Empire was destroyed.
Sol. To this I Reply; The forenamed Interpreters may easily give an Answer to this Doubt, out of the Revelation. Though the Ten Kings did arise out of the Ruines of the Empire, yet all of them afterward were united in one Roman Body of the last Edition; but neither Mahomet nor the Turk ever came within this union or combination.
Object. 2. But it may be further Alledged, That the little Horn did subdue three of the former Horns; and this rather agreeth to Mahomet and the Turk, than to the Papacie, whose part it is to preserve them.
Sol. Among the many Notes of the little Horn, it is possible some few may be applicable to Mahomet and to the Turk: but we should also consider the multitude and Evidence of those others that do utterly reject such an Application. Now there are many Notes that cannot possibly agree with Mahomet or the Turk, if we should come to singulars. And for the eradication of Three Horns, we have largely proved how the Papacie did humble Three Dominions, to have elbow-room in Italy. He did cast down some of the former; and it is as true, That he did preserve the union of the Residue, to make a Roman Catholick Empire. Secondly, For the Blasphemies of the little Horn, The Beast was destroyed, and his Body given to the burning fire. Now, what Congruity or colour of Reason is there, That the Roman Kingdom should be destroyed for the Blasphemies of Mahomet? If you apply this to the Papacy, this is fully verified in that which is spoken, The Beast was taken, and with him the false Prophet, and they both were cast into the Lake of fire. Thirdly, In all the times of the Roman Kingdom, from the beginning to the end, there was the greatest cruelty exercised against the Saints in the times of the little Horn. Now, if you apply this to Mahomet and the Turk, though they have made great waste in the Christian world, yet the War hath not been formerly against the Saints as such; neither hath their cruelty been the greatest that ever hath been. But if we apply this to the Papacy, here hath been a War against the Saints, as Saints; and here hath been the greatest Persecutions that ever were, as appeareth by the whole Book of the Revelation. Fourthly, The little Horn is said to continue a time, times, and the dividing of time. This will not agree to the duration of Mahomet; for, what place of Scripture doth once mention such a thing? But it is plainly applied to the Papacy, Rev. 12. 6. Rev. 13. 5.
These, and many more Reasons, may be produced to prove, That Mahomet cannot be resembled by the little Horn: and the Reasons for the Affirmative are very weak and feeble. On the contrary, if you take the whole Body of the Chapter, and the whole Bundle of Notes, they will be wholly applied to the Bishop of Rome; and strongly prove, That the Papacy is the little Horn.
Now I will try the truth of one Principle, on which the forenamed Authors do build, when they take Mahomet to be the little Horn.
The chief Ground they build upon, is this, Because the Turk doth hold all those Countries in Asia, which were formerly the Continent of the Iewish Church.
To this I have said before, That so long as the Jews were the only People of God, the delineation of the Four Metal-Kingdoms was in special reference to that Church. But they being cast off, the Metal-Kingdoms, so much of them as doth remain, doth more immediately concern the Churches of the Gentiles. If Mahomet be the little Horn, who were the Saints of the most High whom he did wear cut? Will any man say That they were only the Saints of the Jewish Church? Alas! the Jews were a People cast away some hundreds of years before the Name of Mahomet was heard in the world: and they do remain till this day a People not called again.
It may be more truly affirmed, That the Metal-Kingdoms in Daniel's Image, do not concern the Jews only, nor the Gentiles only; but both Jews and Gentiles in their several times. For proof of this, we will lay down some special Observations.
First, In the Image of persecuting States, it is not the purpose of God only to shew Four Revolutions of Empire, but his more special intent is to shew the beginning of the Kingdom of his Son. Secondly, It is his purpose not to reveal this only to the Jews, but to the People of the Gentiles also. This latter may be proved from the person of Nebuchadnezzar, to whom this secret was revealed. For if it had only concerned the National Church of the Jews, That the God of Heaven will raise up a Kingdom that never shall be destroyed, Why was this delivered to Nebuchadnezzar, an Heathen Man, and an Enemy of the Church? When the Lord did reveal to Pharoah the Dream of the seven fat Kine; and after, the Dream of seven lean Kine, this was not only discovered for the good of the Church, but for the preservation of mankind. So the Succession of the Four great Empires, and the beginning of the Kingdom of Christ in the times of the last Empire, these things were not revealed only to Nebuchadnezzar, that the Jews might understand the truth, but that the whole habitable world under Nebuchadnezzar's Dominion, might take notice of that which God did intend to do.
Secondly, This appeareth by the manner of the Revelation to Nebuchadnezzar, which was to this end, That the whole world might observe it, First, If you consider the Person, Nebuchadnezzar dreamed a Dream. Secondly, The way of God's dealing with him; he forgat the Dream, and therefore a great trouble fell upon his Spirit. Thirdly, His calling for the wise-men of Babylon, which City in these times was the Eye of the world, and the seat of the Empire. Now, it is not to be imagined, but all that lived within the Verge of so large a Dominion would be apt to hearken after such a thing: Specially, when they should hear of the trouble of the King, and of the Edict to kill all the wise-men of Babylon. Here was a matter set out, in the view of all Asia as it were, to prove Three Particulars. First, That the God of Israel was the true God. Secondly, That he would set up Four great Changes of Empire in the world. Thirdly, That in the last Succession of Empire he would set up a Kingdom that never should be destroyed. These things were propounded not only for the Church, but for the Observation of the whole habitable Earth under the Babylonian Empire that then was, and for the Ages following.
Thirdly, If we look to the Story of the Evangelists, we do read that the Evangelist S. Matthew doth tell us, That when the Lord Christ was Born in Bethleem, in the dayes of Herod the King, wise-men came to Ierusalem, Matth. 2. 1, 2, 3, 4. Here Interpreters upon the place do raise many Questions. First, Who these wise-men were? Secondly, Why was it Revealed to them by a Star? Thirdly, Why did the Star guide them to Ierusalem, and then vanish out of … These Questions are propounded by Interpreters; and they do give very learned and solid Answers to them. Only there is a Question to which I do not yet finde a satisfactory Answer; and that is this: Why was this matter Revealed to wise-men in the East, rather than to any other Nation, Profession, or Sect among the Gentiles? Spanhemius doth handle this Point in his Dubia Evangelica, part. 2. dub. 31. pag. 326. and he doth come to this issue in the close: Concludimus itaque causum vocationis Magorum nequaquam in illis suisse, sed in solâ Dei vocantis bonitate, & illos ex merâ ejus gratiâ vocatos, sive absolutè eorum vocatio consideretur, sive comparatè: Quod enim & vocati, & vocati prae aliis Dei miserentis fuit illorum potius quam aliorum. Et haec causa causarum est, & summa ratio, pag. 329. Here I do agree, That the Call of the wise-men doth chiefly depend upon the Grace and Mercy of God. This is the Cause of causes, and the chiefest Reason why they were called, and why they were called before any other. But yet, with submission to a better judgement, I think there lies a plain reason in the Scriptures, why the Birth of the King of the Jews, was revealed to the wise-men of the East, rather than to any other Gentiles. For when the Lord had a purpose to Reveal Four great Changes of time to the world, and particularly the time of the setting up of the Kingdom of his Son, he had appointed in his Providence that the wisemen of Babylon, whose Profession it was to understand the changes of time, that they should come to take notice of these things; but more specially of the time when the Kingdom of Christ should be set up. But because they could not know this by their own strength, the Lord did Reveal it to them by the Ministery of Daniel, That he would set up Four Kingdoms over the Earth, whereof the Babylonian in Being was the first; and then in the latter end he would set up a Kingdom that never should be destroyed. In a word, This is the Cause wherefore these changes of times were revealed to the wise-men of the East, because it did suit with their Profession to take notice of such things. And the Lord having once revealed in particular the time of the setting up of the Kingdom of his Son to the wise-men of the East, when the Lord Christ was born at Bethleem in Iudea, in the days of Herod the King; he did Call that sort of men in special, to take notice of that which was foretold. Because these things were revealed to them, they were called in a special manner to take notice of the Birth of the Messiah, and of the beginning of his Kingdom.
From all that hath been said, we may conclude, That the Vision of the Metal-Kingdoms doth concern both Jews and Gentiles: Therefore there is no necessity that Brightman, Grasserus, and other learned men, should take the little Horn for Mahomet, because the Country of Iudea is now under the Turks. Many other Arguments might, be brought to prove, That neither Mahomet nor the Turk can possibly be resembled by the Type of the little Horn. The scope of the text, and the whole collection of Circumstances, do altogether pitch upon the Papacy, which arose after the division of the Roman Empire into ten inferiour Kingdoms in the time of the Emperor Phocas, 666 years from the beginning of the Roman as the Fourth Metal-Kingdom. This is the true Application of the times to the Stories of the Church; and this is the natural sense of Iohn in the Book of the Revelation, That the Number of the Name of the Beast is 666.
Now for the truth of this Interpretation, we will prove it, First, From the whole scope of the text, Rev. 13. Secondly, From the drift of the Spirit, Rev. 17. Thirdly, From the whole Harmony of the Prophecie in the chief and remarkable Circumstances. Lastly, From the scope of the Apostle, 2 Thess. 2. And of these in their Order.