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reft of the Affyrian Monarchs did break their bones
like a Lyon, the Ægyptian Pharaoh like a Dragon
devoured them, Antiochus Epiphanes caft down the Dan..
Saints, and ftamped upon them, and did weare them
out; the Romane Ethnick Emperours the three firft
hundred yeares wäfted them in ten feverall Perfecu-
tions: but these and all thefe were as nothing in com-.
parison of this Deftroyer, all their loines lay not fo
heavy upon the Churches back as the little finger of
Antichrift. Whether we refpect the cruelty exercifed
upon the body, or tyranny over their foules and confci-
ences, or the extent and length of time in both; I fay,..
in refpect of cruelty,firft, upon the body, I beleeve that
upon a due furvey, there would be found upon his
fcore more blood of Saints and Martyrs then was shed
from the blood of righteous Abel to the beginning of
his reigne: A hundred thoufand within the limits of
one Kingdome put to death in a few weeks, thirty or
fourty thousand boasted to have fallen by the hands
of one of his emiffaries in the space of a few yeers;
and iffo, what hath been done in the rest of the Na-
tions, where all who once tafting of the whores cup
delight to drink and to be drunken with the blood of
Saints: In her is found the blood of Prophets,and of Saints, Revel.18.24.
and of all that were flaine upon the earth. Secondly, in
refpect of tyranny upon the foule, we read not that
Pharaoh,or feldome any of the reft, (though they all
oppreffed the people of God in their outward liber-
ties) did much endeavour to force their confciences, or
if they did(as fometimes Nebuchadnezzar and Antio- Dan.3.16.
chus) the cafe was fo cleare that they needed not take
time to answer about it, but this tyrant causeth all both
fmall and great, rich and poore, free and bond, to receive

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10.

Revel.13.14.

Rev.13.16,17. the marke of their spirituall flavery, in their right hand 2 Thef.2.9. and in their foreheads, so that none must buy or felt fave be that hath the mark or name of the beast, and that with fuch deceivableneffe of unrighteousness, with such power es Revel 18.4. figns, and lying wonders,that be deceives thofe that dwell on the earth by means of those miracles which he hath pow er to do: So that even many of the Lambs own followers have in part been deceived by him, and if it were Matth.24.24. poßible they would finally deceive the very elect ofGod.Or ifthirdly, we refpect the continuance and length of his bloody reigne, in this also he exceeds the rest. Ingypt they were evil intreated about two hundred yeers; The Babylonish yoke oppreffed them threefcore and ten years, Antiochus forely wafted them, but it was but for a very little feafon, The Heathen Empire of Rome proved more cruell and bloudy then any of the rest, for the space of three or four hundred yeers but this Antichrift makes inceffant, defperate,and bloudy war Revel.11.2,3. upon them, no lesse then twelve hundred and threescore years together. And if you put all this together, you shall finde just cause why the King of Saints should proceed thus feverely and strangely, in ruining this great enemy of Himfelfe and people, making him as wonderfull in his terrible fall, as he had been in his bloudy reigne

Application.

I

Thus you have the truth of the doctrine, fully and clearely demonftrated, it remains now that I make fome application of it to You,wherein I ball confine my felfe to thofe three ufes which we finde the Church makes of thefe workes in this place, vedli

t

First, they wonder at these wonderfull workes, Foradmiration, they obferve them, they have them digested into long, and fing this Jang of Moses and of the Lamb, ba→

ving

ving as well their hearts filled with admiration of them, as their mouths with praife. And this(Honourable and beloved) let me commend to your practice in the firft place: Come and fee the works of the Lord, even the great and marvellous works of the Lord God Almighty, how terrible he is in his doings towards the children of men: All his works are great, his works of Crea tion, even of the leaft atomes, the works of common providence governing even the wayes of the pismire are great and worthy to be fought out of all them that take pleasure in them, but the works of the Lord towards his Church, the goings of our Lord and King in his Sanctuary, ruling his Saints in the middeft of their enemies, and after this manner breaking in pee ces the Powers which doe oppofe them, is now the wonder of Angels, and fhall be the wonder of Saints to eternity; and fit therfore that now it should be ours. Mans difpofition is naturally taken with thoughts and discourses of things great and wonderfull, and is not fatisfied but in fomething that raises the mind to a high pitch of admiration; here you may behold an object fit, (if any) to beget wonderment, and indeed our fpirits never are right till we stand at gaze here, for this difcovers a plaine difference between the fpirits of godly and carnall men, thefe latter are more taken with vaine and empty things. A Poet or a well-penn'd Romancy how it takes wafting upon it dayes, weeks, and moneths, admiring the wit,invention,ftyle or elegancy, others wonder at the railing of this or that poore man to a great estate of wealth, at another out of the duft advanced to the height of honour thefe things fill their hearts with thoughts when alone, their mouthes with difcourfe

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S

when

Mat.24 2.

when in company yet in the mean time the wonders of Chrift are not taken notice of: Chrift's perfon, offi

ces,

adminiftrations are too bafe things for them to bufie their thoughts about, they can fee nothing. but trivially matters, and not worth their notice in them all, yea they wonder at them who can spend their time in the Study of the Scriptures, and the meditation of thefe works of Chrift. But these men (whatever they think of themselves) are fottish beafts, carnall and brutish perfons, and I may fay of the things they are fo take with,as Chrift to the Disciples who were fo affected with the ftones & goodly building of the Temple, Are these the things ye wonder at? I tell you,there fhall not be left here one ftone upon another: So thefe riches, these buildings, this power and authority, this great man in his countrey, these things I fay, by too much regarding whereof many lofe their foules, what shall they all be ere long? Heaven and earth shall be on fire, and what shall these things bethen: and I may further fay ofthe men who admire these things, that they are greater vanities then the things they wonder at; Who having immortali foules, fit to be partakers of the divine nature, underftandings capable of the knowledge of God, medita tions worthy only of God, fhould yet thus bafely prostitute and abase themselves,to advance a thing of nothing, whereas on the contrary a holy heart is fo taken with Chrift and his wayes, that all other things appear to them to be but toyes and folly, as men got up on high neer the Heavens, behold the earth but as a little fpot. Auguftine obferved this difference in himfelfe, that fo long as he was a franger from the wayes of holineffe, he thought the study of the Scrip

tures

pures to be a dull bufineffe, infinitely preferring Tully before the Bible, but after his converfion he took no pleasure in that Author where he found not the Name of Iefus. Oh therefore that you would poure out your hearts in the study of these things, that the wonderfull way of Chrift's governing in his Church might take up not the leaft part of your thoughts. How he hath kept this bufh burning, and yet not confumed, how strange it was that a few Fishermen should by preaching and fuffering, like fome conquering Alexander, fubdue the Nations; Think of his ftrange course, permitting an Antichrift to Lord it above a thousand years, in the world, fo as to fubdue the world wholly to his yoake, fuffering the Kings to give up their Crowns & Scepters to him,prostituting their power at his feet; and when Satan thought himfelfe fo ftrong as to continue the Church in this condition for ever, that then a filly Monke should fer himself against the world, and in a fhort time refcue a great part of it frōunder his yoak. Another time,come Beerer into England, & think what he did by King Edward,a Child, by Queen Elizabeth, a Woman,the great deliverances, from the Spanish Armado, from the hellish Powder-treafon come neerer yet, and behold the wonders of these two or three last years, in England and Scotland ponder them feriously, they are the Lords doings, and ought to be wonderfull in your eyes Think yet further, how wonderfull he will be, when he comes to be admired in his Saints at the last day; feed your hearts and raise them sometimes with fome of these thoughts, fometimes with others, untill they burne within you. Oh but we cannot meditare ! we love indeed to reade thefe things,and delight to heare them,

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but