Again, Seventhly, This Attempt that is made by the Wicked, is only an Attempt: Here is nothing done, here is nothing brought to execution by Gog and Magog, here is not one Blow given; only their taking a Compafs round about the City and Camp of the Saints.

And therefore I do conceive that if it should be fo, according to this Expofition, that when the Dead are all raifed out of their Graves, and the Devil loofed out of his Prison, he will make no de lay of improving that little Seafon which is allowed him; but goes out into the four Quarters of the World, and finding the Ungodly all raised, filling, or covering the Face of the whole Earth, he immediately beftirs himself, in blowing up that Sin and Enmity which is in their Natures; and fuggefts this Temptation into their Hearts, that there is now but one way which they can take, and that is to mufter up all their Strength and Power together, and fee if they can by Force overcome, and fo deliver themselves from that Judgment, which they will well know they fhall never be able to ftand in.

Now this wicked and horrible Temptation being fuggefted by the Devil, immediately feems to be received by the Wicked; and fo an Attempt is made, by their gathering themselves altogether, out of all Parts and Places of the World, for to compafs the Camp of the Saints, about the beloved City; which as foon as this Temptation is received, and their Muftering together, by taking of a com pafs; Fire comes down from Heaven, and deftroys them: That is, the Wrath of God, like Fire, is vifibly manifefted from Heaven, which immediate ly devours or defroys them in their Attempt. So Hhh

.

that

that nothing is, nor nothing can be done by them, their Attempt which they made, being deftroyed upon the Spot, by the Fire of Divine Wrath; they are forced now (though never so much against their Wills) to appear before the Judgment Seat of Jefus Chrift; as the following Words do teftify.

Eighthly, Let us now confider of all thefe Particulars together: If the Gog and Magog Army is not to appear upon the Stage, until the End of the thousand Years, and that at the fame time Satan is to be let loofe,and the reft of the Dead,or all the Wicked are to be raifed, as has been proved; how then can we reasonably think, that this Gog and Magog fhould be Men living in a mortal State, and fuch a great Multitude of them, to be like the Sand on the Sea Shore innumerable; and to cover the Face of the whole Earth? I fay how can we think that fuch a great Number of People, as is here fpoken of, fhould live upon the Earth all at once?

From whence then muft fuch a great Army arife at the end of the thousand Years, if we do not take in the number of all the Wicked when raifed? But fuppofe we should understand this great Multitude, which will be feen to go upon the Breadth of the Earth at the last Day, to be Men living in a mortal State at one and the fame time, when the reft of the Dead are to rife and live again, where then muft the whole Number of all the Wicked stand, who have lived in these many Generations paft, from the beginning to the end of the World.

Befides, if this fhould be fo, that Gog and Magog must be Men living in a mortal State, and to be fo innumerable as has been expreffed, when at the fame time the reft of the Dead are to be

raised,

raised, what a frange, difmal, and confused Mixture must here be of finful mortal, and finful immortal Perfons altogether? And what a dreadful Crowd. may we fuppofe the World to be in at that time? And therefore this feems to be a thing almoft im poffible.

Again, This I think is most certain, that the Magog Army will not appear upon the Stage, until after Chrift's perfonal coming from Heaven, and the thousand Years Reign with the Saints in his Kingdom is over; at the end of which, Satan is to be loofed (as before) and the reft of the Dead to arife and live again; all which will fill the Hearts of thofe Wicked (if any fuch fhould be found living on the Earth at that time, in a mortal State) with fuch Horror, Diftrefs and Confufion, as will fooner make them run away to hide them, or call for the Rocks and Mountains to fall upon them, than to attempt, in a way of Battel, the Holy City and Camp of the Saints, But,

If it fhould be granted, that the Gog and Magog fhould confift of mortal Men, then here arifeth another Difficulty, and that is, if the Magog Army, (after they have made this Attempt) must be deftroyed in their Bodies with Fire from Heaven; when is it that they fhall arife, that they may appear before the Judgment Seat of Jefus Chrift? Because we read of no more Refurrections of the Wicked, but what is to be among the reft of the Dead, at the End of the thoufand Years; at which time all that ever were, are, or fhall be, must be raifed, that they may be judged.

Laftly, if the wicked are to be deftroyed at the time of Chrift's perfonal coming in the Clouds

with Power and great Glory, or the Number of all the Ungodly who fhall be found living upon the Earth, from whence then muft fo great an Army arife, as to be like the Sand of the Sea Shore for multitude, living in a mortal State, at the end of fuch a glorious Reign? Now that the Ungodly are to be deftroyed at the beginning of this Time, many Scriptures might be produced: I fhall name but a few, in the 2 Theff. i. 8. we read, that the Lord Je fus fhall be revealed from Heaven in flaming Fire, to take Vengeance on them that know not God, and bave not obeyed the Gofpel; who are to be punished with Ever lafting Destruction, &c. Again, The Day of the Lord cometh, that shall burn as anOven; the Proud, yea and all that do wickedly fhall be as Stubble, and theDay that cometh fall burn them up faith the Lord of Hofts, that it fall leave them neither Root nor Branch. Mala. iv. 1. This Day hath a Refpect unto the time of Chrift's coming, as doth appear from the following Words. And therefore, if neither Root nor Branch are to be left, then muft the whole Num. ber bé deftroyed: And then it is that the Earth (which must be meant of the Wicked upon the Earth) fhall be devoured with the Fire of his fea loufy. Zeph. iii. 8. To this agrees what the Apoftle Peter faith in Chap. iii. of his fecond Epiftle v. 10. But the Day of the Lord will come as a Thief in the Night, in the which the Heavens fhall pass away with a great Noife, and the Elements hall melt with fervent Heat, the Earth alfo and the Works that are therein, fhall be burnt up. Now if this great Conflagration, or burning up of the World, is to be upon the Perfonal coming of the Lord Jefus Chrift from Heaven; and before the beginning of the thoufand

to

thoufand Years Glory; as undeniably appears in this Chapter it will; becaufe the new Heavens and Earth are to fucceed in the room of these, when deAtroyed; Then this Text can be no less than a Demonftration to prove, that the Deftruction of the Ungodly must be before the Personal Reign of Chrift among the Saints doth begin: And therefore no wicked to be found alive in a mortal State at the end of the thousand Years.

It is true that Dr. Holmes with fome others, who do believe, that this burning up of the Earth, with the Works that are therein, will be before the beginning of Chrift's glorious Reign. But then he thought that the Lord would referve fome of those (who are not in the Covenant of Grace,but only in the Covenant of Nature) alive, as a Seed to increase during the time of the thousand Years; out of which (at the End thereof) the Gog and Magog is to arife. But in this, here lies a greater Difficulty to me, than in the Expofition which I have given. Therefore, if all these things be duely confider'd and laid together, it doth look to be more poffible and likely, that the Gog and Magog Army will confift and be made up of the number of all the Wicked, when raised, and the thousand Years are finished.

However, that it may appear I am not altogether fingle in this Point, I fhall give the Reader an Account of a Book which fome time fince came into my Hands, who hath writ the very fame thing; though I muft grant I durft not have appeared fo publickly in this, if I had not feen that Book; because I never could find, either in Difcourfe or Reading, that any was of my Judgment until then, and therefore looked upon my felf to be fingle in

this