The Revelation Unrevealed Concerning the Thousand Year Reign, Section 25 – Section 27
§. 25 Seventhly, 7Conseq. Adisadvantage to the souls of the Saints in heaven to be fetcht down to the earth.what an apparent dis-advantage should this be to the blessed souls of the Saints departed, to be fetcht down from heaven, where they are in perfect blisse, to spend a thousand years upon earth, ere the consummation of their glory; to change the company of Angels, for men; heaven for earth; To which main and choaking objection there is wont to be offered a double solution. First, when those departed souls in the highest heaven, Pag. 22.yet it becomes them, as the Angels do, to come down to serve the Saints, and with Lazarus his spirit, to return to their bodies again at the commandement of Christ. True; all creatures owe their due obedience to their Maker and Redeemer; and the more holy they are, the more ready still they are to pay this tribute of their humble obsequiousnesse to the will of their God, which is the supream law, without all pleas of their own inconveniences: But in this case, where shall we find any such command? where the least signification of the Divine pleasure? Surely should he bid any of them glide down to the dreadfull regions of hell it self, he would not stick at the condition; But assoon shall they finde the Almighties charge for the one, as for the other.
Secondly, Pag. 23.they say, it is likely the soules of the dead Saints are not in the highest heaven, but in a middle place better then this world, but inferiour to the Imperial heaven: which is meant in the new Testament by Paradise: wherein certainly, Mr. Archer hath shot strangely wide, both for the name and the place: Here can be no thought of the terrestiall paradise, as Epiphanius weakly imagined, which doubtlesse, was long since defaced by the deluge, that the celestiall paradise then, should either be called, or be a lower place then the highest heaven, is no other then a grosse mesprisone I appeal to the blessed Apostle, 2 Cor. 12.2who was rapt up thither, who tels us that the man he knew, Verse 4.was caught up to the third heaven; and straight, as describing paradise, for some more eminent part in that highest Heaven, he adds, that, he, the same man was caught into Paradise, and heard unspeakeable words; where, that we shall not need to imagine a double rapture of St. Paul, as some of the Fathers, out of this place have done, it seems clear, that, contrary to this Authors assertion, the Paradise of the new Testament is the highest and most glorious place of the Empyreal heaven: which must certainly be hence evinced, unlesse we will grant either two severall raptures of the Apostle, or an unnecessary and tautologicall repetition of one: for having first said, I know such a one caught into the third heaven; he subjoynes, And I knew such a man (whether in the body, or out of the body, I cannot tell, God knoweth) how that he was caught into Paradise and heard unspeakable words: so as his taking up into Paradise must needs be a further advance of that his extaticall rapture; the first rise whereof was no lower then the third heaven: Add to this, that when our Saviour said to the dying convert on the Crosse, This day thou shalt be with me in Paradise, he could intend no lesse, then a place of heavenly glory; The Thief speaks of a Kingdome; our Saviour, of a Paradise; the Kingdome that was spoken of, was the Paradise which was promised.
To this purpose is that, Greg. Observat. Iraen. advers. Haeres. l. 5. c. 5.which our learned Gregory observes out of Irenaeus; who describes the Receit of just and perfect men, to be a certain Paradise in the Eastern part of the third heaven; professing to receive that Tradition from the Disciples of the Apostles: so as this Paradise (according to the best Interpreters) is coeli pars nobilior & eminention, a more noble and eminent part of heaven; and if there may be any damage then, or dis-advantage in the change of a place of more excellence, for a meaner; in the change of the company of blessed Angels for the society of mortall-men, surely it lies strōgly against this opinion, which fetcheth the Saints down from the fruition of an heavenly glory, to the government of the earth: But who told this Author that the Souls of the departed Saints are onelyonly (foreign) as some ancients have expressed it? in some outer porch belonging to the Court of heaven, and not in the inner rooms of those glorious mansious? In a place wherein they have full joy, and perfect happinesse, yet not where Christs body is: and that in this place they are kept till this Kingdom of Christ come? John 17.24we are sure we hear our Saviour say, Father, I will that they also whom thou hast given me be with me, where I am, that they may behold the glory which thou hast given mee: and in his last Sacramentall Banquet with his Disciples, we hear him say; I will drink no more of this fruit of the Vine till I drink it new with you in my Fathers Kingdome; we are sure we hear the chosen Vessell who had viewed those heavenly palaces, say; 2 Cor. 5.1.We know that if our earthly house of this Tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternall in the heavens; Lo, in the heavens, not beneath them: and that immediately upon the dissolution of this earthly Tabernacle, not three thousand yeares after it; and more then so long it must be, by their rule, ere the Apostles can be admitted into heaven; A thousand six hundred years are already passed; and yet the thousand years raigne is not begun; a thousand yeares after that must passe, ere the end of the last judgement, which shall enter them into the possession of their heaven. But a full confutation of any incident passages is no part of my intention: otherwise, I should willingly fall upon the discussion of those Scriptures, which are strained to the defence of that assertion; whereof yet there would be the lesse need, for that the Argument holds strōgly enough even upon their own concessions, for if that Paradise which they imagine to themselves be (though not the third heaven) yet a place of perfect joy and happiness certainly, the exchange of it, during those thousands of years, for so base and dungeon-like an habitation in this lower world, must needs be greatly disadvantageous.
But if not in the highest heaven, where wil he think to place his Paradise? Surely, saith this Author, in the element of fire; A strange soyle, wherein to plant a blisse-full Paradise! But what if there be no element of fire? such Tenets surely the Schools afforded our younger days; some Patricius would tell him, that if there be an excesse of heat in those upper Regions under the concave of the Moon, yet it is neither fire, nor elementall. But if upon some new Principles he shal make the substance of the starry heaven (which we had wont to call quintessentiall) to be the element of fire, I shall choose rather to wonder at that strange Philosophy, then to wrangle about it; wishing that it were no more unsafe to broach our own singular imaginations in these points of Divinity, then in these harmles speculations of Nature. However it be; whether either of them may be the receptacle of the departed souls of the faithfull, till Christs next comming, it is too much curiosity, to inquire, and no lesse presumption to determine; sure we are, and it is agreed on all hands, Wisd. of Sol. ch. 3.3.that immediately upon their freeing from this clog of earth, they are in peace and unspeakable happinesse, whether in a locall or virtuall Heaven: neither need we doubt to say, that the full complement of their glory, shall be in that great Day, when their old consorts their bodies shall be joyned with them in the partnership of their consummate blessednesse.
§. 26 Eightly; 8Conseq. Children of the Saints conceived and born in sin; yet still Saints.how ill is it contrived to match such contrarieties in the same subject: The Children of the Saints, who are the free subjects of this Kingdome shall be begotten in sin, conceived and born in sin, and yet be true Saints, as if onelyonly grosse actuall sins, from which they shal be restrained, were inconsistent with holinesse; Job 14.4.who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean, saith Job. If then they be pretended to be true Saints, why are they not cleared from all sin whatsoever; unlesse we will bring in the justly-exploded distinction of sins veniall and mortall, sins besides, not against the law, and shall free concupiscence from the taint of sin; and so shall in the new Kingdome find out sinning Saints, or holy sinners.
And how insufficiently is it pleaded, that there can be no hypocrites in this Kingdome, for that it being administred by the raised Saints, they cannot possibly passe undiscerned by so piercing eyes; as if those sharp eyes of the raised Saints could penetrate the bosomes of men, and look into the heart, which the Maker of it hath lock't up for his own onelyonly search, and intuition.
§. 27 Ninthly; 9Conseq. No use of Ordinances, yet Prayers heard.it suits not over-well that the subjects of this Kingdome shall not cōverse with God by Ordinances, and yet that they shall have a full and perfect answer from God, to all their prayers; Pag. 29.since it cannot be denied that Prayer is none of the meanest Ordinances of the Almighty.
Tenthly; 10Conseq. Heaven dispeopled of all the ancient glorious inhabitants for 2000 years.upon this first Resurrection of all Saints at the next coming of Christ, how hard and harsh a Consequent must it needs seem, that heaven or (as he will have it) Paradise, shall be for two thousand years at the least, dis-peopled of all their ancient and glorious inhabitants, the souls of Gods Saints, which have departed from the beginning of the world to the very instant of our Saviours return: all which are for that time housed again with their raised bodies upon earth; and there continued upon the employment of their Kingly administration.
Eleventhly, how incongruous doth it justly seeme that the soules of Gods Saints after their first dissolution should be in so various, different and unequall condition, as that some of them should be ruling on earth, clothed with their bodies, whiles others which departed after Christs comming down, should (as new guests) be triumphing in Heaven?
Twelvethly, how can it accord with that which the Apostle hath taught us concerning the last comming of Christ to judgement; 1 Thess. 4.14.Them also which sleep in Jesus, will the Lord bring with him; if the Saints shall be found all on the earth before him; as being raised by him at his second comming, to raigne here below till his return to the finall judgement of the world? These and many more absurd inferēces may be brought, as necessarily following upon the doctrine of this first Resurrection, and raign of all Saints; if I did not feare to cloy my Reader, with distastfull superfluities.