Sermon of the Fifth Monarchy, Sermon
A SERMON OF The fifth Monarchy.
Revel. 5. 9, 10.
And they ſung a new ſong, ſaying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the ſeals thereof: for thou waſt ſlain, and haſt redeemed us to God by thy blood, out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation: And haſt made us, unto our God, kings and prieſts: and we ſhall reign on the earth.
THe ſcope of this whole Chapter is (as I have ſhewed you heretofore) to ſet forth (in the beginning of this Prophecie) The ſolemnity of Chriſts undertaking to be king, and to execute under God all his decrees contained in this book, to fulfil and accompliſh them, in governing this world to the end thereof, for the good of his Church.
In the firſt verſe therefore, you have (all being acted in a Comick way) God the Father, ſitting upon a Throne, holding a book in his hand: and (to glorifie Chriſt the more, that he alone was able to undertake the execution of the things contained in that book) a Proclamation was made, Who in heaven or in earth was able to open the book, and to looſe the ſeals thereof: ſo verſ 2. In this ſtrait, (becauſe none was found worthy to do it) Jeſus Chriſt ſteps up, and takes the book out of the hand of him that ſate upon the throne: ſo verſ. 7. And then, from verſ. 8. the Chapter is ſpent in the acclamations of the ſpectators, of all ſorts, which are caſt into three ſeveral Rings or Rounds, ſtanding round about the throne. There is firſt the acclamation of the Church of men on earth, verſ 8, 9, 10. There is ſecondly the acclamations of the Angels, ſtanding round about the Church of men, in a Ring remoter then they from the throne, verſ. 11 & 12. And then you have the common multitude that do ſtand without, every creature in heaven, and in the earth, and in the ſea, all ſinging, Praiſe and glory to him that ſuteth on the throne, and to the Lamb, for ever and ever.
I am yet in the acclamation of the Church of men on earth, contained in the 8, 9, and 10 verſes. Where you have, firſt, their deſcription, verſ. 8. Secondly, the ſong which they ſing, in the 9 & 10 verſes; and that for two things: firſt, becauſe that the Lamb had redeemed them: ſo verſ. 9. and ſecondly, for advancing them to be kings and prieſts unto God. And then laſtly, you have an Inference, or a triumphant concluſion they collect from all what they had ſeen; and that is this: WE SHALL RAIGN ON EARTH.
I finiſhed that of Redemption, a day or two ago.
I came ſecondly to their Advancement: Thou haſt made us, unto our God, kings and priests. There are theſe things to be obſerved in it.
Firſt, the perſons that are made kings and prieſts, US, the generality of Saints.
Secondly, I ſhewed you what it was to be a king and a prieſt.
Kings they were,
1. In regard of the inward frame of their ſpirits. And
2. In reſpect of the outward Royalty which he beſtoweth upon them, as upon Kings.
Jeſus Chriſt himſelf is here preſented both as a King, and as a Prieſt; as a Lion, and as a Lamb ſlain: and anſwerably, he makes the Saints partakers of the priviledges which he himſelf hath. Thou haſt made us (ſay they) kings and prieſts. Jeſus Chriſt himſelf is naturally a King; he hath it by inheritance: ſo Heb. 1. 4. He hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name then the Angels: but we are made, and made by him. He is the Heir; but we come in through him to be coheirs with God: ſo the Apoſtle ſaith, Rom. 8.
See and acknowledge the prerogative of Jeſus Chriſt above all the Saints. Though all the ſame priviledges that are in Chriſt himſelf, are in the Saints; we are ſons as he, we are kings as he, prieſts as he: yet all theſe with this difference; he is naturally ſo, we are made ſo, made ſo by him.
In Heb. 5. 5, 6. when the Apoſtle would prove that Chriſt is a Prieſt, and hold forth that title of his, he quoteth two places; and a man would wonder why thoſe two plaees ſhould be put together: Firſt, verſ. 5. ſaith he, He that ſaid, Thou art my ſon, to day have I begotten thee. As he ſaith (ſo verſ. 6.) in another place, Thou art a prieſt for ever after the order of Melchizedek. How doth the firſt of theſe places, viz. Thou art my ſon, this day have I begotten thee, prove that Chriſt was a Prieſt? Thus: The law of Nature, before Moſes, was, that the eldeſt, the firſt-born in the family, was both the Judge, and alſo the Prieſt of that family. Now becauſe Chriſt is both the natural and the eldeſt Son of God, therefore he is a Prieſt by inheritance; but we (I ſay) are made ſo by him.
And take this for a certain Rule, That that which is derived, can never arrive to that fulneſs of prerogative with what is natural. An adopted ſon can never come to be a natural ſon. A made King and a made Prieſt, can never come to the ſame height of prerogative and title that he hath that is naturally ſo. And therefore though all that is in Chriſt, and all his priviledges are by way of participation in the Saints, yet it is impoſſible they ſhould be in that fulneſs: Why? Becauſe it is derived: Thou haſt made us kings and priests.
Thou hast made us, unto our God, kings and prieſts.
I take it, thoſe words, unto our God, do not refer to Kings, but to Prieſts, and to that alone: and my reaſon is this; Not onelyonly becauſe it cannot in any propriety of ſpeech be ſaid, We are kings unto God: We may be ſaid to be kings unto the creatures, and unto all things elſe. But to be Prieſts unto God, to offer up ſacrifice unto him, that is proper. And the reaſon further is this, Becauſe in Rev. 20. 6. (where this thing is fulfilled) though he ſpeaks there of their raigning, and of their being Kings, yet he doth not ſay they are Kings unto God, but onelyonly ſaith, They are prieſts of God, and of Chriſt.
And Prieſts they are unto OUR God; becauſe that God becomes their God by a free choice, though in Chriſt, yet not for Chriſt: We are choſen in Chriſt, but not for the merit of Chriſt; he is our God freely.
I told you that theſe words, Thou haſt made us kings and prieſts, reſpect eſpecially their priviledge and honour to rule this world, and the affairs thereof. When they ſaw Jeſus Chriſt undertook the managing the affairs of the world, and to execute the Decrees contained in that book held in the hand of him that ſate on the throne, which contained how God would have the world managed unto the day of Judgement, and that Chriſt was thus crowned king; they upon this utter this ſong of praiſe, That they are made kings with him; as in reſpect of the glory to come in heaven, being co-heirs with Chriſt, ſo alſo as being joyned in commiſſion with him for the managing of the affairs of this book, and accompliſhing the things contained in it. We alſo (ſay they) are kings and priests. And their inference implies as much, We ſhall raign on earth: the loweſt interpretation of which, that can be given, muſt be this: We ſhall have an hand in guiding the affairs of the earth; which although it ſhall have an eminent accompliſhment at a certain ſeaſon to come, therefore they ſay, We SHALL raign: yet notwithſtanding they are kings at preſent, and it is in ſome degree fulfilled now.
I told you laſt day, I thought there were four degrees of the fulfilling of this their being Kings.
Firſt, in this world, they by their prayers having an influence in the managing the affairs of the world, and into the accompliſhment of all the great things that Chriſt doth do for his Church. And though it may be, and it is certain, they have not in all ages known (according to what is in this prophecie) what Jeſus Chriſt will do next, yet ſtill, by the ſpirit of Prophecie, as it were, the Saints have been guided to ſeek for thoſe things at the hands of God and Chriſt, which he was about to accompliſh.
Secondly, in heaven; and for that I quoted firſt that place in Rev. 2. 26. where, To him that over cometh, (therefore it is meant of a ſtate after death) and keepeth my commandments to the end, will I give power over the nations, and he ſhall rule them with a rod of iron: as a veſſel of the potters ſhall they be broken in ſhivers, even as I have received of my Father. When is this to be fulfilled? Not before death; for he ſpeaks of him that overcometh, and keepeth his commandments to the end. Not at the day of Judgement onelyonly; for it is the ſame promiſe was made to Chriſt in the ſecond Pſalm, which is evidently to be underſtood of Chriſts Government committed unto him by the Father until the day of Judgement, which here you ſee he ſaith he hath received of his Father. If therefore that in the ſecond Pſalm be meant (as clearly it is) of Chriſts government of the world unto the day of Judgement, and that he promiſeth his Saints after death the ſame priviledge; then of neceſſity it muſt needs follow, that they have a ſhare and a hand therein.
I quoted likewiſe another place for this, namely, out of Dan. 4. 17. where when that great buſineſs, the greateſt work then in the world, was to be done, the cutting down of Nebuchadnezzar, and turning him out for ſeven yeers to feed among the beaſts of the field, the Angel that comes down, and gives the command for it, ſaith, This matter is not by me alone, but it is by the decree of all the watchers, that is, of all the angels, and by the word of the holy ones: they all concur in it. And thus Junius interprets that place.
I added likewiſe, for the ſtrengthening of this, a third Scripture, Revel. 6. 9, 10. where the ſouls under the altar, newly ſlain, having their ſouls ſevered from their bodies, under that great and laſt perſecution under Diocleſian, (for to thoſe times doth that cry refer) they cry for vengeance upon their blood: Not onelyonly doth their blood cry, as Abel's is ſaid to do from the beginning of the world, but their ſouls are ſaid to cry.
The Papiſts, that they may bring in the doctrine of the invocation of Saints departed, (which is that great doctrine of devils, or of Daemons rather, which the Apoſtle foretold ſhould be brought up in the world, and is the greateſt idolatry that ever was upon earth) they teach that the ſouls in heaven do there know all things here below, in the glaſs of the Trinity, and of the Godhead. And our Divines, that they may wholly take away that Argument for invocation of Saints, from the Papiſts, many of them have denied that there is any knowledge at all of the things that are done here belowe. But, my brethren, there is no connexion between their knowledge of the great affairs of this world, and having an influence into them; and their invocation, none at all. For,
Firſt, no man is able to affirm that they know all particular things here: and yet me-thinketh no man ſhould deny, but that they have knowledge (by the Angels that are continually meſſengers from heaven to earth) of the great things that are done here. There is joy thorowout all heaven, when a ſoul is converted. And in Rev. 18. 20. when Rome is deſtroyed, as there will be joy thorowout the whole earth, ſo there will be joy thorowout the heavens alſo, when that City is ruined, in which is found the blood of all the Apoſtles, and of all the Martyrs and Saints ſlain by the power and authority of that City (for ſo God hath ordered it) from the Primitive times to this day; then ſaith he, Rejoyce over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apoſtles and prophets: for God hath avenged you on her. I ſay, there is no connexion between thoſe two; That becauſe they may be ſuppoſed to know ſome of the great affairs of the world, that therefore they muſt be invocated. Invocation therefore is upon theſe grounds denied by our Divines, and juſtly too: For,
Firſt, it is certain, and cannot be denied, that the Angels do know the things of this world; for they attend there as miniſtring ſpirits continually, which the other do not: and yet becauſe they know them, it is no argument at all, that therefore we may invocate Angels, or pray unto them to pray for us. If a man were ſure that an Angel were by him, and now attending on him, (as I am certain there are Angels attending the Saints; for they are their great guard in all places, eſpecially in the Churches, in their publike Worſhip) yet he hath no warrant at all to deſire that Angel to pray for him: God hath not appointed ſuch a way of communion between us and him.
Secondly, we have no warrant to believe that the Saints in heaven do hear us when we pray unto them to pray for us; and leaſt of all, to think that one Saint ſhould be able to hear a thouſand, nay ten thouſand Saints on earth at one time; it is the greateſt abſurdity in the world to imagine it: and yet how many ſuitors hath that one virgine Mary? The Saints departed may be ſuppoſed to have a great intereſt and priviledge, and participation with Jeſus Chriſt, and a great honour communicated to them, for the managing of the great affairs of this world; and yet there is no conſequence, nay the clean contrary, that therefore we ſhould invocate them; becauſe that no man can be aſſured, nay it is certain they do not hear the prayers of any, much leſs can they hear the prayers of ſo many: which is the dotage of the Church of Rome.
But laſtly, it is flat Idolatry, and that for this reaſon, Becauſe that Chriſt being aſcended into heaven, is conſtituted and appointed a Mediator there; and therefore for any to pray to the Saints in heaven to pray for them, is to have another Mediator before Chriſts face, whereas he alone hath took on him that office: for, There is one mediator between God and man, the man Chriſt Jeſus.
And ſo now I paſs from the Explication of thoſe words; and come to the third thing, which, I take it, is more eminently aimed at in the text, and in theſe words, We ſhall raign on earth.
I ſhall open what I conceive to be the meaning of theſe words, exceeding briefly, not intending to make a Subject of any thing in this Chapter. For when I firſt took it in hand, I onelyonly purpoſed to run curſorily over it.
Firſt then, it is evident, that there muſt be ſome great eminent advancement, yet to come, as the conſequent of Chriſts being King; which theſe Saints here, had in their eye.
This I ſhall open to you by degrees.
For firſt, if you mark it, upon Chriſt's taking the book, (which was his undertaking to be King of the world) they fall out into this Outcry of praiſe and rejoycing, We ſhall raign on earth. This is the fruit, this is the iſſue, this is the concluſion of Chriſt's having taken the kingdom, and undertaking to be King. And it muſt needs too be ſome great and eminent thing, which muſt have an eminent and conſpicuous accompliſhment: for it is that thing which is next in their thoughts. They over-look all priviledges elſe, and do pitch upon this, and parallel it with Redemption. For, if you mark it, their ſong of praiſe runs but upon theſe two things; Thou haſt redeemed us with thy blood, and hast made us kings, and we ſhall raign on earth.
Secondly, it is ſome eminent thing, to be fulfilled at an eminent time to come. For mark the difference; Thou haſt made us kings, ſay they; thou haſt given us that title, and that honour at the preſent: but we SHALL raign; ſpeaking of it, as of a thing yet to come. They are kings, and they do raign in that reſpect by prayer; but yet they raign in ſackcloth: yea, but we SHALL raign, ſay they.
Now that you may the better underſtand how it is to come, and when it is to come; for otherwiſe in all other reſpects the Saints are Kings in all ages; but I ſay, that there is a peculiar time in which it is to be accompliſhed, which they have now in their eye.
To make this clear to you, do but conſider the natural contexture of what now followeth in this diſcourſe.
They utter this, you ſee, in the beginning of the book, in this viſion of Chap. 5. which (as I have ſhewn) is the prologue to the whole that follows. They utter it when they did but firſt ſee Jeſus Chriſt undertake to be King of the world, and had taken the government thereof upon him, and the execution of the decrees contained in that book he took out of the hand of him that ſate on the throne. Before the end of the world ſhould come, there was a long time, and a great many things that were contained in this book, in this roll which Chriſt took, which was written within and without, that were orderly one after another to be performed; therefore, in the next Chapter to this, after this Viſion is paſt, (which as I ſaid, is the prologue) there is firſt a going forth to conquer; Behold, (ſaith he, verſ. 2.) a white horſe, and he that ſate on him had a bowe, and a crown was given unto him; and he went forth conquering, and to conquer. He had begun to ſet upon the world then, he went forth conquering; but he muſt go on to conquer; for he had the Heatheniſh world to conquer, and he hath the Antichriſtian world, and he hath the Mahumetane world to conquer. And all his conqueſt is carried on, till towards the later end, by his bowe; he takes nothing out with him elſe; he overcomes by his Word, which are the arrows he ſhoots into the hearts of the Kings enemies, as you have it in Pſal. 45. 5. So that now all the ſtory thorowout this book afterwards, it is but the ſtory of Chriſts conquering of his Kingdom with his bowe, and with his arrows, and executing the decrees that were contained in the roll he took out of his Fathers hand. When you come towards the end of the book, in the 19 Chapter, he that in the ſixth Chapter you ſaw when he went firſt out, riding upon a white horſe, you ſhall ſee him with Armies attending of him, whereof he is the General, riding likewiſe upon a white horſe. I ſaw (ſaith he, verſ. 11.) heaven opened, and behold a white horſe, and he that ſate upon him was called Faithful and True; and in righteouſneſs he doth judge and make war. For towards the later end, when he comes to grapple with the Antichriſtian world, he doth do it by the Sword, and not by his Bowe onelyonly. And therefore when he ſpeaks of the Beaſt (chap. 13.) who had made war with the Saints, he tells us, (verſ. 10.) that he that killeth with the ſword, muſt be killed with the ſword. It ſhall be the ſword that ſhall end it. Therefore he that at firſt went forth upon a white horſe, with nothing but his bowe, you ſee him in the nineteenth Chapter coming to make war, & the Armies which were in heaven following him. And what is the iſſue of it? Verſ. 20. The Beaſt was taken, and with him the falſe prophet, (whether the Mahumetane party, and the Pope, I will not now determine; but) they were altogether ruined and deſtroyed, caſt into a lake of fire burning with brimſtone. All this Jeſus Chriſt doth, before he comes fully to poſſeſs his kingdom. And this you have related to you between the 6 Chapter and the 20 Chapter.
Well now, at the 20 Chapter, you ſhall ſee, that what they ſaid at the beginning would be the iſſue of Chriſt's taking upon him the government of the world, and undertaking to fulfil the Decrees contained in the book, the ſame is declared to be made good then, as being the eminent ſeaſon for it. For after that he had taken the Beaſt and the falſe Prophet, an Angel came down from heaven, (ſo verſ. 1.) having the key of the bottomleſs pit, and a great chain in his hand; and he lays hold on the dragon, that old ſerpent, which is the devil and Satan, and bindes him a thouſand yeers, and caſteth him into the bottomleſs pit, and there ſhuts him up, ſets a ſeal upon him, that he ſhould deceive the nations no more, &c. And then, verſ. 4. I ſaw thrones, and they ſate upon them, and judgement was given unto them. And I ſaw the ſouls of them that were beheaded for the witneſs of Jeſus, and for the Word of God, and which had not worſhipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands: and they lived and raigned with Chriſt a thouſand yeers. But the rest of the dead lived not again, until the thouſand yeers were finiſhed. This is the firſt reſurrection. Bleſſed and holy is he (verſ. 6.) that hath part in the firſt reſurrection; on ſuch the ſecond death ſhall have no power; but they ſhall be prieſts of God and of Chriſt, and ſhall raign with him a thouſand yeers. Mark; what they ſay at the beginning, when they ſaw Jeſus Chriſt undertake the Kingdom; the very ſame (after he had conquer'd all his enemies, the Beaſt and the falſe Prophet, and then taken the devil and all, and flung him for a time into the bottomleſs pit) is here fulfilled. That which before they ſaid would be the iſſue of Chriſts government, is here in the very ſame terms ſaid to be accompliſhed. Here in the 5 Chapter they ſay, Thou hast made us kings and priests; in Chap. 20. 6. they are ſaid to be priests of God, and of Christ. Here they ſay, And we ſhall raign on earth: in the 20 Chapter it is twice repeated; firſt, verſ. 4. They raigned with Christ a thouſand yeers: and again, verſ. 6. And they ſhall raign with him a thouſand yeers. This, I ſay, ſhews it evidently that at the beginning they had this in their eye, as that which ſhould be the iſſue and cloſe of Chriſts governing the world.
But you will ſay, Is what is ſaid in Chap. 20. meant of the Saints raigning on earth?
Certainly yes: and the reaſon is this, Becauſe during this raign, Satan is ſaid to be bound. Now to have Satan bound while the Saints raign in heaven, is unneceſſary and needleſs: for how can he diſturb them, or be an annoyance to their kingdom there? Whereas you ſee, that by way of preparation to this kingdom they ſhall have on earth, both the Beaſt and the falſe Prophet are taken, and Satan himſelf bound. Neither, ſecondly, can it be meant of the raign of the Saints in heaven; for that is for a longer time then a thouſand yeers; and thoſe Saints that were ſlain in the Primitive times, they have already raigned longer then a thouſand yeers. But that which doth moſt clearly evince it, is this, That in the 7 verſe the devil is ſaid to be let looſe: And when the thouſand yeers are expired, (ſaith he) Satan ſhall be looſed out of his priſon. Therefore it muſt neceſſarily be meant neither of the kingdom of heaven after the day of Judgement, nor of the kingdom of heaven before the day of Judgement; but of a kingdom which they ſhall have on the earth, as the words are in this 5 Chapter.
Me-thinks (my brethren) that thus much ſhould be evident to all mens apprehenſions, by paralleling the words uſed here at the beginning of Chriſts reception of the government of the world, and the words expreſſed at the later end, (viz. in Chap. 20.) when Chriſt had thus accompliſhed the decrees contained in the book. I ſay, Me-thinks thus much ſhould be conſpicuous to all mens underſtandings, That there is ſome eminent kingdom for the Saints after all; when the enemies of Chriſt, the Beaſt and the falſe Prophet, and Satan himſelf is overthrown; when the decrees of this book are accompliſhed, when the time of this Prophecie is run out, that then, I ſay, there is an eminent kingdom for the Saints to have on the earth. Thus much, I ſay, me-thinks ſhould be evident to any mans underſtanding: It is that which in the beginning theſe ſay will be the end of Chriſts kingdom here; it is that which they comfort themſelves withal; and, it is that which in order followeth Chriſts accompliſhing the decrees of his Father, and the ruine and deſtruction of his enemies.
There have been thoſe that have made this to be already fulfilled, namely, That there hath been a time wherein the Saints in heaven that were killed in the Primitive times, had a great deal of honour put upon them for a thouſand yeers; and the Saints on earth had a great deal of peace; which they compute to be from the time of Theodoſius the Emperour, till the perſecution aroſe afreſh by the Pope and the Antichriſtian party; and they reckon it to be about a thouſand yeers.
But it is evident, that that is not the meaning. For the time of this Raign here ſpoken of, muſt be after the Beaſt is deſtroyed: for in the 19 Chapter, verſ. 20. it is ſaid, The Beaſt was taken, and caſt into the lake: and then follows in the 20 Chapter, their raigning with Christ a thouſand yeers. And likewiſe all the Vials mentioned in the Chapters before, were firſt to be poured out upon him: and therefore it cannot be during the Popes raign. And then again, it cannot be during that time neither, becauſe it is ſaid that the devil is bound up, that he ſhould deceive the nations no more: Now during the raign of the Beaſt, Satan never deceived the nations more then then: ſo Chap. 13. 13. He deceiveth them that dwell on the earth. Never did he deceive men more both with Idolatry and Superſtition, never was there raiſed more Wars and Perſecutions againſt the Saints, then during the raign and time of Popery. The Saints indeed have had a great deal of honour put upon them by the Papiſts, in Canonizing of them, and the like; but alas, it was all but a falſe honour, it is not the honour and priviledge that the raigning with Chriſt a thouſand yeers gives them; neither would they have ſo rejoyced in it when Chriſt firſt took upon him to be king; not rejoyce, I ſay, in that glory and honour which the Popiſh world gave them during thoſe times of Popery; no, We ſhall raign on earth, ſay they: this was it which was the ground of their rejoycing, and which they had then in their eye. Therefore as this was not begun when theſe Saints here in the 5 Chap. firſt ſpake it; ſo neither ſhall it begin until the Beaſt and the falſe Prophet be deſtroyed. You muſt firſt ſee the accompliſhment of thoſe great things that are written in this Book concerning Antichriſt and his Kingdom, which will be the cloſe of the Kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jeſus Chriſt, and then follows that which you have in the 20 Chap. the 4, 5. and 6. verſ.
The next Queſtion will be, What perſons he ſpeaks this of, when he ſaith, We ſhall reign on the Earth?
Clearly, of thoſe that are redeemed unto God by the blood of the Lamb, Chriſt Jeſus, out of every Kindred, and Tongue, and People, and Nation.
But the great Querie will be, whether they ſpeak this of themſelves, perſonally, or whether they ſpeak it of all the Saints, ſucceſſively? that is, not onelyonly we now, but all the Saints in many ages to come, ſhall be perſecuted and oppreſt: as we were by Heatheniſh Rome; ſo they ſhall be under Antichriſtian Rome; (for in Rome is found the blood of all the Saints; therefore I do not ſo much fear any Proteſtant-perſecution) yet in the end, though we now by our blood lay the foundation, and do but ſow to it; yet there is a crop to come up one day of a Kingdom which Jeſus Chriſt hath undertaken to bring into this world, which his Saints ſhall have.
You may very well interpret it ſo; and certainly for my part I take it to be that which was their aim. And the language of the Scripture doth import as much. We ſhall not all die, (ſaith Paul) but we ſhall be changed. Did Paul think to live until the day of Judgement? No, yet he ſpeaks in the perſon of We, and the Chriſtians then might have ſaid the like; and yet thoſe perſons all died. He meaneth therefore, the whole Community and Fellowſhip of the Saints, whom the Apoſtle Peter, in 1 Pet. 2. 9. calleth a Generation, and a Nation: and therefore now, as a Nation that knows that one day they ſhall prevail and have a Kingdom, as the Jews think, (though they ſuppoſe it many yeers to come, and do not think that they themſelves ſhall enjoy it) yet ſpeaking in the language of their Nation and Generation, may ſay, We ſhall one day be the top of Nations, and have theſe and theſe Priviledges: that is, Not we that now live; but all of this Nation, this Generation, this Kindred, as they are called alſo. And thus it hath a paſſable and a fair interpretation; We ſhall reign on earth.
So that the plain Doctrine or Obſervation is but this, That there is in the end a Kingdom to come here for the Saints, that after all the Kingdoms of the World have had their time and their date, by which the Saints have all along been oppreſt and injured, there is, even on earth, a Kingdom to be given unto them, when all Nations ſhall be converted unto God, and the Saints in them be the prevailing party in the World. The Scripture ſeems to run much this way.
The firſt man (that I finde of an Engliſhman) that diſtinctly fell into this Notion, was a man of much holineſs and piety,Mr. Wood. now with God. I'll tell you the occaſion that led him into theſe thoughts, as he himſelf (in a manuſcript I have lying by me) expreſſeth it. I went, ſaith he, to recollect all the promiſes that are in the whole Book of God made unto the Saints, beginning at Geneſis and ſo going along throughout all the old Teſtament (not dreaming of any ſuch notion as this is) & I found no check at all in my thoughts, until I came to read ſome of the Prophecies in Iſaiah, which profeſſedly ſpeak of the times of the Goſpel, & which ſpeak ſuch great, high, and glorious things of ſpiritual enjoyments of God, with outward peace & proſperity. As now to give you an inſtance or two, Iſa. 2. from verſ. 3, and ſo on: In the laſt dayes the mountain of the Lords houſe ſhall be eſtabliſhed in the top of the mountains, and ſhall be exalted above the hills, and all nations ſhall flow unto it: and they ſhall beat their ſwords into plough-ſhares, &c. neither ſhall they learn war any more. The like you have in Micah 4. the whole Chapter. So in Iſa. 25. 6, 7, 8. when the vail ſhall be taken from off the hearts of the Jews, (as Paul interprets it in 2 Cor. 13.) he tells you of the peace and glory that ſhall be in that nation, and how the Lord will wipe away tears from off all faces, and the rebuke of his people ſhall be taken away from off all the earth; whereas before they ſhould lie under all ſorts of reproaches over all the World. Likewiſe in Iſa. 60. 9, 10, and ſo to the end, you have promiſes of all ſorts to this purpoſe, how that the gates of the Church ſhould be continually open, they ſhould not be ſhut day nor night, that men (ſaith he) may bring unto thee the forces of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought: for the nation and kingdom that will not ſerve thee, ſhall periſh; yea, thoſe nations ſhall be utterly wasted. The ſons alſo of them that afflicted thee, ſhall come bending unto thee, and all they that deſpiſed thee, ſhall bow themſelves down at the ſoles of thy feet, and they ſhall call thee, The city of the Lord, The Sion of the holy One of Iſrael. Whereas thou has been forſaken and hated, ſo that no man went thorow thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations. Thou ſhalt alſo ſuck the milk of the Gentiles, and ſhalt ſuck the breſt of kings. For braſs I will bring gold and fortron I will bring ſilver, and for wood braſs, and for ſtones iron. Violence ſhall no more be heard in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy borders; but thou ſhalt call thy walls, Salvation, and thy gates, Praiſe. The Sun ſhall be no more thy light by day, &c. Alſo in Iſa. 65. 16, 17. He who bleſſeth himſelf in the earth, ſhall bleſs himſelf in the God of the earth, &c. for behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former ſhall not be remembred, nor come into minde. Behold, I create Jeruſalem a rejoycing and her people a joy: and the voice of weeping ſhall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of crying. There ſhall be no more an infant of daies, nor an old man that hath not filled his daies. And they ſhall build houſes, and inhabit them; and they ſhall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them, &c. So in Zech. 14. 9. The Lord ſhall be King over all the earth: in that day there ſhall be one Lord, and his Name one. I cannot ſtand to ſingle out thoſe things in theſe Chapters and many others of the like kinde, which are moſt emphetical; you may do it when you read them. Now, ſaith he, when I read theſe promiſes (as likewiſe that in Dan. 7. that after all the four Monarchies, (whereof the remainder of the fourth ſtandeth) ſhall be deſtroyed, the kingdom, & dominion, and the greatneſs of the kingdom under the whole heaven ſhall be given to the people of the Saints of the moſt High.) When I found ſuch promiſes, (ſaith he,) as theſe are, I knew not what to think, I wondred at it, and was amazed. Hereupon, he ſaith, he read ſome Commentators, whom he found to expound them all of Heaven and the glory thereof, ſet out in an allegorical way: but yet this ſatisfied him not; for it ſeemed evident to him, that it was to be underſtood of a Kingdom here on the Earth; for he perceived there was mention made of ſinners, and of men that die, and the like: and therefore reading other interpretations, he found them apply it to Ordinances, and and other Spiritual enjoyments of God, with abundance of outward peace and proſperity. Hence therefore he concluded that there muſt neceſſarily be a time in which theſe promiſes muſt be fulfilled and accompliſhed; for the Saints have alwaies in all ages been more oppreſt under the Goſpel, then ever they were under the Law; they have propheſied in ſackcloath, and have been the outcaſt, and the reproach of all the Kingdoms, and are ſo accounted even to this very day. Daniel you know was a Court-like Prophet; for he lived in the alteration of thoſe great Monarchies, the Aſſyrian to the Babylonian, and the Babylonian to the Perſian; and God did reveal himſelf accordingly to him; for you ſhall finde his prophecie ſpent moſt in deſcribing the four Monarchies that ſhould be in the world; the deſcription you ſhall finde ſpecially ſet down in the 7 Chapter, where having deſcribed the three firſt Monarchies, he cometh at the 23 verſ. to the fourth, the fourth Beaſt, which he ſaith ſhall be the fourth Kingdom upon Earth, which ſhall be divers from all Kingdoms, and ſhall devour the whole Earth, and ſhall tread it down and break it in pieces, as the Roman Empire did, the Reliques whereof remain in the Turk & Pope to this day. But after all theſe Beaſts were ended, I beheld (ſaith he, verſ. 11.) even till the Beaſt was ſlain, and his body deſtroyed, and given unto the burning flame. For in Rev, 19. the Beaſt is taken, and ſo there is an end of him. And as for the other Beaſts, he ſaith, They had their dominion taken away, yet their lives were prolonged for a ſeaſon. But in the end and concluſion of all, what ſaith he? I ſaw one like the Son of man, (verſ. 13.) and there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages ſhould ſerve him; his dominion is an everlaſting dominion, which ſhall not paſs away, and his kingdom that which ſhall not be deſtroyed. And verſ. 27. The kingdom, and dominion, and the greatneſs of the kingdom under the whole heaven, ſhall be given to the people of the Saints of the moſt High. The text you ſee is expreſs, that the Kingdom here ſpoken of, is a Kingdom which the Saints ſhall have after the four Monarchies are deſtroyed, which he ſaith ſhall be a kingdom, not in heaven, but, under the whole heaven, where there are People, Nations and Languages, men, who ſhall continue in their ſeveral varieties, which in Heaven they do not; for there is neither Tongue, nor Kindred, nor Nation there.
Let me ſpeak another thing to you. Diſcourſing once with a Papiſt, who defended (as you know they do) the truth of their Religion, and the ſupremacy of the Roman Church, he brought this Argument to me. Read (ſaith he) the Prophets, you ſhall finde ſome of them make mention of a Mountain that ſhall be ſet upon the top of all the Mountains, to which all the people of God ſhall reſort in a conſpicuous manner; that peace and outward proſperity ſhall attend and accompany that Church or Mountain, the riches of the Nations ſhall be brought into it, Kings ſhall bow down their heads unto it, and lick the duſt of their feet, &c. Where (ſaith he) were theſe and the like prophecies ever fulfilled, if not in the Church of Rome?
And for my own part, I muſt acknowledge, that let any one read ſuch prophecies as theſe are, and give me an anſwer how or when they either are or can be fulfilled, unleſs this be granted for a truth, That after all is done, there is kingdom to be given unto the Saints upon the Earth.
When you come to deal with the Jews, you ſhall finde, that they alwaies knew and expected, and do now know and expect, a kingdom to come for them in the end. The Apoſtles themſelves ſeemed to have ſuch thoughts; for in Act. 1. 6, 7. when Chriſt was about to aſcend into Heaven, they ask'd him, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Iſrael? Chriſt you ſee doth not deny that there was a kingdom to come for them, onelyonly he ſaith, It is not for you to know the times and the ſeaſons, which the Father hath put in his own power. Plainly intimating, that there was a time and a ſeaſon, which God had for it, which he reſerveth in his own power. And the Apoſtle Peter, when he comes to deal with the Jews, and preach the Meſſiah to them, in Act. 3. knowing that their great miſtake lay in looking that the Meſſiah ſhould even from the firſt come to them as a glorious Monarch, and reſtore to them the kingdom, and not come meek and lowly, as he did, riding upon an Aſs, he deals with them according to their own Principles, onelyonly removeth their miſtake: Repent ye (ſaith he, verſ. 19.) and be converted, that your ſins may be blotted out, when the times of referſhing ſhall come from the preſence of the Lord, and he ſhall ſend Ieſus Chriſt, which before was preached unto you, whom the heaven muſt receive, until the times of the reſtitution of all things (The very word which the Diſciples uſed in Acts 1. Wilt thou not reſtore, ſay they?) which God hath ſpoke by the mouth of all his holy Prophets ſince the world began. You Iews, ſaith he, expect a reſtitution; but here is your miſtake; this Jeſus muſt firſt be preached, and he muſt go into Heaven, and the Heaven muſt receive him, till that time of reſtitution cometh, and then he will at leaſt manifeſt himſelf unto you. He that wrote that little book called, The Voyage into the Levant, he ſaith, That he had often occaſion to converſe with the Iews, whom he generally found to be in expectation of their Meſſiah; and when he told them of theſe kinde of notions that were up and down this Kingdom and other places of Europe, concerning a Kingdom that God would give unto his Saints here upon the Earth, after the calling of the Jews, and that their Meſſiah would manifeſt himſelf unto them even according to their own expectations; he ſaith, They were infinitely taken with the hearing of it. It ſuiteth with all their Notions, and with their Expectations, and with all the Interpretations the Rabbins have given of thoſe Scriptures.
And conſider one thing more: All ſorts, almoſt out of all quarters of the world, though they run ſeveral waies, yet they fall all into this Notion. As now for inſtance: Thoſe that are for the Reſtoration of Churches to their firſt purity, they conclude for this reigning for a thouſand yeers, and that the Saints ſhall have thrones given them, &c. There is a time coming, ſay they, after Antichriſt is down, when there will be a reſurrection of Churches to their firſt purity and glory, in which there ſhall be onelyonly Saints, without mixture of others. And ſo they interpret that place in Rev. 20 5, 6. This is the firſt reſurrection: bleſſed and holy is he that hath his part in the firſt reſurrection. And, ſay they, Until then, all Churches will be but as dead things: the great reſurrection is reſerved till that time. Others that are for the coming of Chriſt in Spirit, (as the language of ſome is) they ſay this alſo, That towards the end of the World, Jeſus Chriſt will break forth to his people with a great deal of glory and ſplendor, ſo as never before. The very Jeſuites themſelves have been ſo much convinced, that ſuch things are to be in the later daies, that ſome of them have written a book of the fifth Monarchy; onelyonly indeed they do apply and appropriate it unto themſelves, and call that kingdom which, they ſay, ſhall be in thoſe daies, Regnum Jeſuiticum.
The ſcope I have in ſaying this, is to ſhew you, that although men run ſeveral waies in their explication and expectation of this time, the Jews going one way, the Papiſts another, and thoſe amongſt our ſelves ſeveral waies; yet as it is an Argument, and a ſtrong one, That there is a God, and that the Notion of a Deity is ſtamped in the Spirits of men, becauſe all Nations have pitched upon worſhipping of ſome God, although their error hath been to worſhip the falſe: ſo the variety of waies that men have run, and the expectations that men are in, of ſuch a time coming as I ſpeak of, it argueth ſtill for the ſubſtance, that there is ſome ſuch thing, although one miſtake, and another miſtakes, and perhaps none can diſtinctly tell what is to come. This I am certain of, that the Primitive Chriſtians did abundantly comfort themſelves with this Notion, and the conſideration of it. And here you ſee the Saints had it in their eye at the very firſt, when Chriſt took the Government of the World upon him, as that which ſhould be the cloſe of his Kingdom: We, ſay they ſhall reign on the earth; there is a Kingdom reſerved for our Generation; ſpeaking (as I ſaid) in the language of the Communion of Saints.
And there is all the reaſon in the World for it, beſides what I have mentioned out of the Scriptures: for,
Firſt, The Saints that have been oppreſt here in this World, it is a righteous thing with God to give that Generation reſt, and that they ſhould have their turn after all Kingdomes are diſſolved; that what Adam loſt, ſhould be reſtored to them again.
Secondly, That all thoſe promiſes which (my brethren) have had an accompliſhment but in an indirect way, as that which Chriſt, & which the Pſalms alſo mention, The meek ſhall inherit the earth: That all the prayers that have been put up, as, That thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven: That Abraham and his ſeed ſhould be heirs of the world: That there ſhall be a new heaven, and a new earth, in which righteouſneſs dwelleth; which, ſaith Peter, we look for: and that promiſe, if you look in Iſa. 65. I am ſure you will finde to be made to men on earth; for he ſaith plainly, They ſhall build houſes, and inhabit them; and they ſhall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them, &c.
There are thoſe that go yet further, and ſay, That though there is ſuch a Kingdom belonging to the Saints, yet they ſay withal, That the Saints that have been before, they ſhall during that Kingdom riſe again; ſo interpreting that place in Revel. 20. according to the very letter: I ſaw the ſouls of them that were beheaded for the witneſs of Ieſus, and for the word of God, and which had not worſhipped the Beaſt, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Chriſt a thouſand yeers: but the rest of the dead lived not again till the thouſand yeers were finiſhed. This is the first reſurrection. Which reſurrection that ſhall thus uſher in this reign, ſome interpret of a generation of Saints a multitude of Converts that ſhall come with the ſame Sprit and Power that all the Saints formerly beheaded, had; and ſo they are ſaid to riſe again in them, as Elias is ſaid to riſe again from the dead in Iohn Baptist, who came in the Spirit and Power of Elias. But there are theſe reaſons given to the contrary, and that it muſt be meant of a true Reſurrection, and of a Reſurrection taken in a proper ſenſe: for,
Firſt, It is ſaid, That the ſouls of them that were beheaded, they lived; how? by a reſurrection; for he ſaith, It is the first reſurrection. Now, how do ſouls riſe? no way, but by having their bodies united to them. They are the ſouls of men that have been killed, and killed by the ſword: now their Reſurrection muſt be anſwerable to their death; it is made the reward of it. Their natural lives were taken away, their Reſurrection to life therefore, muſt be taken in the ſame ſenſe and proportion to the life which they loſt. And then again, obſerve, it is the very ſame ſouls, in which you ſhall finde a great deal of emphaſis: for read the 6 Chap. verſ. 9. &c. I ſaw, ſaith he, the ſouls of them that were ſlain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held, lying under the altar, crying with a loud voice, &c. They were the Primitive Martyrs; for this was in the beginning of the book. Now here in the 20 Chapter he ſaith, I ſaw thoſe ſouls, or the ſouls of them that had been ſlain, for the witneſs of Jeſus, and for the word of God: he uſeth the ſame deſcription; and he addes to them (for the 6 Chap. is meant of the Primitive Chriſtians, ſlain under heatheniſh Rome) thoſe that had been ſlain under Antichriſtian Rome; for he ſpeaks of ſuch as had purified themſelves from Antichriſt, and which had not worſhipped the Beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands, and they (ſaith he) lived and reigned with Chriſt a thouſand yeers. But the rest of the dead lived not again. No wicked men ſhall riſe then; they are reſerved until the day of judgement.
But to what end is this?
Firſt, That as theſe Saints do now govern the World inviſibly (as I ſaid before;) ſo they may then do it viſibly. And great muſt needs be the glory and happineſs of thoſe times.
Secondly, That which the Angels do now inviſibly, the Saints ſhall then do viſibly. The Angels now have this World ſubjected to them, and all the affairs thereof; and the execution of the Decrees of God, are ſtill ſaid to be done by them. But, ſaith the Apoſtle, Heb. 2. 5. Unto the Angles, God hath not put in ſubjection the world to come, whereof we ſpeak. And he doth not ſpeak of the World to come after the day of judgement; for it is that Kingdom which Chriſt ſhall have before he giveth up all things unto the Father. This world here, therefore, is ſubjected unto the Angels that do miniſterially rule, and who do work with the Spirits of men this way and that way for the good of the Church, in oppoſition to Satan. But then all ſhall be done by the Saints in a viſible maner.
Thirdly, Hereby they are made conformable to the ſame ſtate and condition Jeſus Chriſt was in: whilſt he was in the World, he was mean, he was under all ſorts of oppreſſion; he dies, his Soul goes to heaven; he riſeth again, and after he was riſen, he ſtays here below for many days, converſeth with his Diſciples at times, inſtructeth them in the things of the Kingdom of God, appeareth, diſappeareth, &c. And if you ask me, What will the life of men be, thus riſen? I ask, What was the life that Jeſus Chriſt led during thoſe forty dayes before he did aſcend? And if you object, that this will be a diminution to their happineſs; I anſwer, It was no diminiſhing of the happineſs of Jeſus Chriſt. Aſſuredly, he injoyed more bleſſedneſs being riſen, and his Soul and Body united, then when his Soul ſingly and alone was bleſſed; and yet, for thoſe forty dayes he was here upon the Earth. Think my brethren, of the day of judgement, whenas Jeſus Chriſt himſelf will come with all his Saints and Angels, out of the place of Heaven into this viſible World; and it will ask a long time to judge the World, becauſe he will judge it as a man, and lay open the ſecrets of all hearts; and we may be ſure that will be done in this viſible World. The Angels that come down from heaven to earth, do yet ſee the face of God therefore it is no derogation to the happineſs and bleſſedneſs of the Saints.
And if you ask me. Whether during this time they ſhall eat and drink? I anſwer, The children of the Reſurrection neither marry nor give in marriage, or do any ſuch thing; but they are as the Angels of God. Chriſt after his Reſurrection lived not upon any ſuch thing; no more ſhall the Saints, although the number of them upon the earth ſhall be innumerable; for the earth ſhall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, and the Name of God and of Chriſt ſhall be ſet up in the whole earth; and the greater part of the World ſhall be Saints. And though thoſe that ſhall then be found alive, may haply eat, and drink, and build houſes, &c. yet thoſe that riſe again, ſhall not.
I have, as briefly as I could, opened this thing to you, which here theſe Primitive Chriſtians, in the very beginning of the book, have in their eye. Whether it be meant onelyonly of that generation of Saints, and of the Reſurrection in the 20 Chap. or onelyonly a Reſurrection by way of ſucceſſion, in compariſon of former times; or whether, yea or no, it ſhall be a true and proper Reſurrection, I leave undetermined: onelyonly this I ſay, That certainly there is ſome great thing (after all the Kingdoms of the world have had their turnes) for the Saints to have, and that on earth, both by the promiſes in this book, and by all the prophecies of all the Prophets which have been ſince the World began. And therefore, as Peter ſaith, Seeing we expect ſuch things, what manner of perſons ought we to be, in all holy converſation and godlineſs!
FINIS.
End of the text · Thomas Goodwin, Sermon of the Fifth Monarchy (1654)